Memory Risk
by fanreading
Summary: Hermione goes to St. Mungo's to get help for a particular situation and get's a Healer she didn't expect. Draco Malfoy is doing something he's passionate about but has his own frustrating issue to deal with. How do these two help each other when their proximity is a risk, but necessary for the solution to their problem?
1. St Mungo's Hospital

**A/N: Hi, you'll find that this fanfiction is way different from the other one on here. I am a Dramione fan and have been reading a lot of good fanfics recently. Made me want to try one out. I'm very pro-canon (if that's even a thing) and like to stick to how the books are. I don't mind bending some stuff though; it makes things fun. I thought Rowling a little too hard on Draco's personality in later life. Not how he was/is, just the comment she made about him staying sort of set in his ways and only changing a little. I think she's a little too resolute on making characteristics set, which is funny because a lot of her characters have many layers. I thought Draco showed a lot of potential in changing more than she had him change in the epilogue. I made this story up real quick, so forgive any mistakes with the timing and grammar. It's not finished yet, but it's not meant to be super long, so perhaps only a handful of chapters. Hope you all enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own Harry Potter.**

**Chapter 1: St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries**

Hermione sat in the comfortable room that was in a building adjacent to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. She wouldn't have known, at least not more than three months ago, that St. Mungo's had other buildings for particular patients. She felt silly that the thought never occurred to her. Almost six years since the war had ended and she was still finding things out in the magical world.

She sighed, seeping deeper into the cushioned seat as she waited for the Mediwitch to come. She was one of the best, as far as Hermione had heard, to deal with this section of the hospital, so she felt she had nothing to worry about. Everything was going all right until recently. Otherwise she would have steered clear of coming to the hospital at all. She just wished she didn't feel so lonesome. Harry had offered to come with her and so did Ginny, but she had kindly refused their company. This felt too intimate and she wanted to be alone for the first appointment even if that made her feel lonely for the time being.

She sat up straight, determined not to let the past few months get her down. In the end, she was happy with the result and nothing would ever change that. There was absolutely no regret in her gut or conscience and, despite what happened that caused her to not be ecstatic, she was definitely overjoyed. It was a weird state to be in.

The door opened, making her jump, but that wasn't what made her freeze. The last person in the world that she had wanted to see had just walked in and, because he didn't bother looking up from the file in his hand, didn't even know who was sitting there. His blond hair caught the sun, making it lighter in some areas and the green cloak reminded her, as they had before, of when they were Hogwarts students, despite it being shades lighter than the dark green that symbolized Slytherin. He was saying something, but she didn't hear a word, too stunned to comprehend anything. It was only when he turned to face her, his once pointed features long since changed to match his growth into adulthood, and set his grey eyes, no longer holding any coldness they had when he was a boy, on her that he paused, too.

* * *

Draco downed a potion before heading to the next client, the headache making it hard to concentrate. They were less frequent now, but were still coming, much to his annoyance. He had woken up in St. Mungo's only about nine weeks ago, the place he had worked at for the last four years, really five since he interned one, and found that he couldn't remember anything of the last eleven months or so. It was infuriating to have to navigate his life with the patients that knew him and the people outside of work that he had also met.

He walked into a room where his colleague's patient was waiting, not bothering to see who it was since he needed to finish reading his client's current effects of the burns he had received from a particularly vicious Blast-Ended Skrewt. He didn't even know those things existed anymore since that Hagrid had, inexplicably, gotten Manticores and Fire crabs to mate.

"I'll be taking over for Healer Thisbe. She's recently retired and has recommended me to take her place, so I hope this isn't an inconvenience to you. I can assure you that, while I may not have been here for as long as Healer Thisbe, I am can provide as much—"

He cut off once he turned and saw Hermione Granger sitting in the seat and staring at him as if she had seen a ghost. She looked only a little different from the last time he saw her, which was not long before he lost his memory. She was now working in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement after working in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures for three years.

His parents, his father mainly, had scoffed and complained about the laws she worked hard to draft and present to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, pushing for elf and, surprisingly, goblin equality, along with other creatures that she felt were being treated unfairly. He found that he didn't really have a problem with most of the laws and even admired her unyielding effort in it.

Since that horrible year in which he was forced to face how ridiculous his family's idea about blood and superiority were, he barely knew what to make of things anymore. He wasn't stupid and though he was on unsteady ground, he tasked himself to thinking a lot of things over and seeing them at face value. Himself included. He didn't like the coward he had saw in the mirror looking back at him. Couldn't stand it. He did what he had to in order to become someone that was still him, only less vile, less like the circumstances that led to that bloody war. He didn't want to be a vessel in which his father's old ideology had seeded ridiculous bigotry.

If he were being completely honest, it was not an easy road and it was very hard to overcome some of the prejudices that had been drilled in him since an early age. Over the years though, (because it had taken years) he gradually saw a lot of different perspectives and his values had changed as time went by. Researching his own family's dealings with Muggles before the International Statute of Secrecy was passed helped him change his views quicker than what he thought he would. It turned out past generations had frequently hung out with high Muggle society and were against the imposition of the Statute. His family made their fortune by Muggle assets and still had a hand in to this day, even though they would never admit to it. The first Lucius Malfoy had even wanted to marry the Muggle Queen Elizabeth I, for crying out loud. The information did wonders for Draco to accept Muggle and Muggle-borns. It also made him realize just how slippery his family was, even towards themselves, and for such a long time.

"Hermione," he said after the brief pause.

To everyone's surprise, Hermione had gotten in direct contact with the Malfoy family after getting into the Department of Magical Law Enforcement almost two years ago. It had taken the better part of a year, but she had stubbornly weaseled her way into the politics surrounding the Malfoy family and the Ministry.

His family was reviled by the majority of the Wizarding community partly because they barely escaped Azkaban, and they were struggling to keep whatever power they still had. They were very defensive when she had started enquiring about business deals and collaborations, but eventually yielded when they couldn't turn down the meticulous and near genius way she maneuvered the system. He was more willing to work with her than his father, seeing that change in himself and their society was inevitable and they had come to friendly terms, albeit after a number of months. In the end, with how much the Malfoy name rose again in the Ministry, even his father begrudgingly had to respect her and his mother even invited her over for tea, though he couldn't see how that was tempting, considering the location.

He took a closer look at her. She looked more tired than the last time he remembered her, but she had a distinctive glow about her. She had her dark hair in a simple yet elegant braid that had a few curls falling along the side of her face, which suited her quite nice. She wore dark jeans and a light jacket over a knit sweater that was a pretty blue and went well with her skin tone, reminding him of the Yule Ball. His grey eyes met her brown ones, which quickly looked away, before his gaze went back to her stomach, the glow making more sense now. She blushed when she followed his sight and pulled her light jacket around her, hiding her bump.

"Congratulations," he said, a little disconcerted at her condition. He had missed much due to the incident and wasn't sure how he felt about the situation he had walked in to. To him, it was as if she had become this way almost over the past couple of weeks, which was impossible, of course, because of his memory loss. It seemed that not too long ago she was livelier and frequently associating with the Malfoy family. Her stomach had definitely been flat, but those were the memories before he had woken up. He tried to squish the absurd feeling of jealousy and betrayal. "Is it Mrs. Weasley now?"

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"No, no," she answered in a small voice, "still Ms. Granger."

It was his turn for surprise. He also smashed down the elation he felt at the information. 'What's wrong with me' he asked, shaking his head in a minute way in an attempt to stop the ludicrous thoughts from creeping in.

Not wanting to make her more uncomfortable at her admission to being single, he finally opened her file, feeling stupid for not getting to it sooner and looking over the information.

"How are you, Draco?" she inquired after a few seconds, her voice louder than before. "I heard you had a run in with a previous…acquaintance and were in a coma for some time."

"Yeah, it was really unpleasant waking up with a massive headache," he answered, briefly glancing at her to be polite. He was happy he didn't forget how to be civil with others. His younger self would no doubt have added plenty of insults and would definitely not have become a healer. He was glad they had been on speaking terms before the time period of when he lost his memory. She had been one of the most stimulating women he knew that could keep up with his wit and keep him on his toes with the ideas she always had coming. "I can't remember the past eleven months, unfortunately. I'm not missing some big milestone in our friendship, am I," he asked playfully.

She laughed at that. "No, nothing too extravagant. We did get married, though."

His head turned so quick he got whiplash. He couldn't speak from shock, even if he had anything to say.

Hermione bust out laughing at his reaction.

"I'm joking, I'm joking!" she exclaimed through near tears of laughter. "I couldn't resist the temptation, I'm sorry."

Draco visibly slumped in his chair, his heart beating faster than he thought it ever had, including the time he had his wand turned on Dumbledore. For fractions of a second, he really had believed her and the thought of her being his wife, carrying his child, brought up unusual emotions he wasn't familiar with.

"Are you okay," she asked seriously, her laughter quickly abating when he hadn't recovered as quickly as she thought he would.

"I'm fine," he answered, giving her a small smile. "I didn't think we could joke like that."

"Hmm, no, I suppose you wouldn't remember. Can you forgive me?" she said, placing a hand on his arm, looking contrite.

"Of course," he readily replied, looking back at her medical file to avoid too long of eye contact and trying not to like the sensation of her small hand on him. It would be unprofessional of him to find her as lovely as he did. Though, to be honest, he had long come to terms that his teasing of her at school was actually a bad attempt at him trying to deal and hide his attraction to her.

He mentally chastised himself. This was Hermione Granger, the girl he mercilessly tried to bully at Hogwarts, and now soon to be mother of a child she no doubt was having with a man she loved, albeit unmarried to said mystery man. Even if something could happen between them, he doubted she would ever find his ex-Death Eater and previous cowardly self remotely attractive. But if that Weasley wasn't the father then who was, especially when she was having—

"Twins?" he asked, surprised even as he read her file. "Well, I suppose it makes sense since you're already showing as much as you are at three months."

"I'm really excited," Hermione said, placing a hand affectionately on her swollen belly and smiling with such content that Draco wondered how she could be so happy without the man who did this to her by her side.

"We'll have to know details about the father in order for your pregnancy to go as smoothly as possible. I understand you came here after not finding adequate help in Muggle facilities?" Draco inquired, making sure to be professional. It wasn't his business to meddle in Hermione's personal life, though he did want to verbally berate the man who let her alone in her situation without even having the decency or intelligence to marry her.

The guy had to be a real idiot. How could he not see that she was perfect? She was a brilliant witch with an understanding of people's motives and personalities; a willingness to forgive past grievances, and fierce loyalty, bravery, and confidence. What kind of man wouldn't want her? She had awful taste in men. Just look at the Weasley who had a brain that only told him to eat whatever was in sight. She was too much woman for a guy like him anyway. She needed someone who could keep up with her on an intellectual level, if not an emotionally mature one as well.

"Um, he's a Muggle," Hermione said, avoiding eye contact.

Draco felt his head turn to the right in question. Did she think he had a problem with Muggles? Weren't they friends, a Muggle-born and a Pure-blood? He remembered his father being upset at seeing how much he and Hermione got along and challenged one another. Lucius wasn't a fool and knew his views on blood purity didn't fit in anymore. But he was a Malfoy, and Malfoy's were more than willing to change attitudes if that meant they would survive in their world in higher society. It didn't make him like the 'Granger girl' any more, however, though he did acknowledge that she was a force to be reckoned with, which was as much as an approval anyone could have hoped for.

"Is it possible to get any records or information on his medical history?" Draco asked. He was a Healer and he was going to make sure Hermione's children would be safely delivered into the world.

His mother could only have one child and that fact distraught her even when she pretended it didn't. He wanted to be a Healer when he was a kid, but his father soon rid him of that idea. Now though, with what happened in the war and You-Know-Who, his desire to treat others with ailments resurfaced. It was weird, now, how he once couldn't tolerate the touch of Muggle-borns. Or thought he couldn't. It really showed him how messed up his upbringing had been.

"Malfoy, I think I should get another Healer to take over. We're too close and it would just seem awkward for you to be the one doing this," Hermione said in a resolute voice. "I didn't know you dealt with this type of case. Do many Healers move around from one type of ailment to another?"

Draco didn't miss the use of his surname and felt his eyebrows knit together in a frown. Something didn't sit right. She made a slip that would have been missed by someone who didn't know her well, yet spoke volumes to someone who did.

"I'm the most qualified person in this hospital to manage a situation like this. No one has done as much research as me when dealing with possible childbirth difficulties. It's true that not too many Healers move around and usually specialize in one section of treatment, but I can address a number of injuries and maladies that may have to be cared for, including yours. Why don't we discuss this again when you come back for assessment?"

Draco didn't give her a chance to respond as he handed her a piece of parchment he had scribbled her next appointment on as he spoke, trying not to lose his temper. There was no way anyone else was going to take over Hermione's case.

His mother had suffered enough from her disappointments that he witnessed as a child and he wouldn't let others suffer through that. Especially Hermione; he would make sure of that.

He wasn't lying. No one else had done half as much research as he had on the subject of childbirth, even Healer Thisbe, though no one liked to admit that he was as good as he was because of his age and family. The stupidity of people never ceases to amaze him.

He offered his hand to help her up, pleased that she took it, and opened the door for her.

"How are you traveling?" he asked, concerned. He knew it was a stupid question, considering the person he was asking, but he couldn't help himself.

"I'm using Muggle transport. I felt it was the safest. Now don't give me that look, Draco Malfoy, I know for a fact that your family keeps a car in the garage," Hermione said, giving him a look that he had seen often in school when she was scolding Harry and Ron.

"How do you know that?" Draco asked, clearly puzzled. He never would've thought his father would let anyone outside the family know about the Muggle car he loved like a child loved their first broomstick.

"Well," Hermione started, clearly regretting mentioning the car.

"You're not getting out of telling me," Draco said, moving to block the door. How could forget such a thing? Well, he didn't _willfully _forget such a thing. Damn that Death Eater who had attacked him. His uncle Rodolphus, no less! He still had no memory of the attack, but his parents had confirmed it.

Rodolphus never got caught and he knew he and his parents had had no idea where he was hiding. Apparently he had kept tabs on them and didn't like, as far as Draco had gathered from his parents, their recent affiliation with Hermione. He had no idea how a fight between him and his uncle had come about, though. His Healer, the experienced Alden, had been adamant about him not trying to remember anything. He was hit with a combination of a curse and a Memory Charm and they were trekking unchartered territory. If he tried to remember, he could possibly forget other things or worse; fall back into a coma. Alden said he got off very lucky only being in a coma for a week and stuck in bed for another, to make sure nothing very serious was wrong. Draco silently agreed, but not remembering the better part of a year sucked. A year, apparently, Hermione had been a part of, if only for her job.

With Hermione being uncertain of telling him information about the past, he figured she knew about the risk of telling him anything, most likely courtesy of his mother.

"I'm sure this little piece of information isn't going to lapse me into a coma, Hermione. It's hardly anything to be riled up about, I'm sure," Draco said, determined to at least get a little background on what persuaded his father into showing her his car.

Hermione pursed her lips in irritation but told him what he wanted to know. "Your father and I were discussing business one day and he made a comment I didn't appreciate about Muggles. One thing led to another and he wanted to show me that he knew a thing or two about them, specifically cars. Then he called me a know-it-all. Well, not so blatantly, but close to it."

Draco couldn't help but laugh. He didn't think anyone besides Severus and her close friends would ever call her a know-it-all, especially his father.

"It's not that funny," she said with slight annoyance, pouting a little.

"It is if you know my father. He hates being proved wrong, and you've done that since we were in school. I guess he was happy he got an opportunity to show you up," Draco elaborated. "And he would never show anyone his car unless he really respects them. I'm happy to know he's coming around," Draco added, a little offhandedly and moving away from the threshold of the door.

"Really," Hermione asked, clearly surprised. Then she made a what-do-you-know face before heading out the doorway he had vacated.

"Oh, Draco, would you do me a favor and tell Mrs. Malfoy that I would be more than happy to join her for tea on Sunday? I would send an owl, but I think it would be quicker getting to her by you," Hermione said, adjusting her purse a little.

Draco was glad she didn't carry a bag full of books like she used to, though he wouldn't put it past her spelling her purse to fill it with loads of them anyway.

"Sure," he agreed, not so surprised at finding that she had eventually accepted his mother's invite for tea.

He sighed as he watched her go, dispirited that he couldn't remember anything about the past year. There were so many things he wanted to know, but most likely couldn't ask and expect an answer.

Apparently he and Hermione were close enough to joke and even his father seemed more familiar with her. He tried asking some things the past week, but his parents were hard to budge. He would have to speak with them again. Surely keeping things vague wouldn't hurt anything.

Healer Alden said to expect flashbacks but so far all he ever had were headaches. He at least needed some outline of what other's lives had been like for the past year. He headed towards Alden's office, determined to at least run his idea by the older Healer.

**A/N: I encourage everyone to go check out Rumaan. They have a lot of Dramione stories and I did borrow elements from her stories, which I hope she doesn't mind. This fic came easy, so I don't think it'll take me long to finish it. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do with it, but I do plan on finishing so, if you ended up liking it, don't fret. I think I'm mainly going to be in Draco's head, but that may change. A lot of the information about Malfoy's family, in as far as dealing with Muggles, is on Pottermore and I used it to make his and his family's point of view what it is. I also didn't mean to be mean to Ron, it just kinda seemed like a thing Draco would do. Please review, if you would be so kind.**


	2. Odd

**A/N: I have a feeling that a lot of the viewers that clicked on my story did so because it was rated M. I decided to change it because there isn't going to be anything near what qualifies as M on here. If you wish to find something more, ahem, "Adult", I recommend a story I recently found called Cruel and Beautiful World by Lena Phoria. It is very dark and intense and something I wouldn't usually read, but I also thought was very good. It's long and I think it has elements worthy of being rated M. Also, thanks for all those who reviewed! I really appreciate it! To answer buttercup88's question, I'd have to say it'd have to be The Accidental Malfoy that I borrowed elements from in Rumaan's story.**

**Disclaimer: Rowling be not my name.**

**Chapter 2: Odd**

Hermione walked away from Draco in as calm a manner as she could. She applauded herself for getting through the meeting as smoothly as she did. It was hard seeing him without any memories of the past eleven, almost twelve months. He now only remembered back to when they had finally been comfortable calling each other by their first names, which she supposed she was grateful for. If he had called her Granger, she probably wouldn't have fared as well.

She had been there when Rodolphus attacked his nephew. After the aged wizard had jumped out of the shadows of the alley they had been walking down, he had quickly bound Hermione stuck to the building wall. He had then confronted Draco at wand point and asked about his association with a "filthy Mudblood". The derogatory word led Draco to punch his relative hard, giving him a chance to reach for his own wand. Draco had been winning the duel that had commenced and Rodolphus, in a last desperate attempt, had aimed his wand at Hermione and cast a mispronounced curse, most likely due to a spell that hit his face not too long before. Draco hadn't enough time for anything other than to jump into the line of fire.

Hermione had paused in her silent and complex counter-curse, distraught when she saw Draco crumble to the ground after getting struck with Rodolphus' curse. She had continued with renewed vigor, hoping once again that it would work with the wand on her person instead of directly in her hand, and held back tears in her eyes, instead opting to glare daggers at the Death Eater that looked down at his nephew with distaste.

Hermione's counter-curse released her from the wall and she had quickly grabbed her wand, making swift work of Rodolphus, catching him off guard and adding a stinging hex when he was incapacitated, for good measure.

When she had heard from Healer Alden that Draco would wake up from his coma, she was relieved beyond belief. Contrarily though, when Draco had awoken, Alden had told her that Draco had no memory and relayed the dangers of telling him anything about the time he forgot, which led her into a state of morose. He wouldn't have been in the state he was in if only they had nothing to do with each other. Hermione then spent the last few months working on a counter-curse. The spell that hit Draco wasn't entirely a Memory Charm, so she knew there had to be some type of way to reverse the effects if she could only figure out Rodolphus' intended spell. Harry tried to help, but the Death Eater wouldn't give, saying it was what the "blood traitor" deserved. Even Draco's parents had attempted to get the answer out of him but with no luck.

Nothing came of their efforts except for the agreement that it would be best for Hermione not to be near Draco for at least a few good months since she was with him during the confrontation. The Healer said it would probably trigger Draco's flashbacks sooner than he was ready for and possibly leave irreversible damage. Hermione sighed again as her hand came to her stomach. Why did complications have to arise now and why with the one person that wasn't supposed to see her? She thought back to their meeting.

It was nerve-racking in the beginning. She knew Draco was a Healer, but she didn't realize how good of a Healer. Despite knowing him very well, he didn't do justice to himself in his occupation. She was a little chagrined that he didn't tell her before. She didn't count his saying of doing "a little bit of everything" as actually doing almost everything. That's why she was so surprised when he had walked in. That and the fact that she hadn't seen him out of the hospital bed awake.

Then she couldn't help her blush when she saw that he was staring at her stomach. She had to remind herself that he couldn't remember the better part of the year when he had asked if she had married Ron. Her concern for his health, even though she was meeting with his Healer outside the hospital to come up with a possible way to reverse the curse, came up and she couldn't help but ask how he was, tentatively mentioning the incident in the process.

His playful question had made it easy for her to create a joke, but in the end ultimately made her sorry for both of them with his reaction. Then, if she wasn't mistaken, he had looked a little irked when he asked about the father of her babies. There was no possible way she could have had the father present. She tried to change the subject and get herself from out of his care. That turned out to be a big mistake.

She could tell that he had been angry with her suggestion of getting a different Healer. She knew it was probably for the best though, given the fact that they shouldn't be near one another for his sake. Judging by what he said, though, he was her best chance at making sure the birth had no complications.

Then she had to let slip about the car when he had asked her about her transportation method, blocking the way out until he got an answer. His father, after Hermione had mentioned that her idea came from Muggle business, said, "Well, I suppose Muggles are good for a thing or two," which made her harrumph. "What do 'sophisticated' wizards know about Muggles," she had asked.

Lucius had raised an aristocratic brow and proceeded to lead her to the garage, considerate enough to avoid the drawing room. The dark blue Rolls-Royce was absolutely beautiful and Hermione found herself nodding approvingly. Lucius smirked and said, "Cars, for one, Ms. Granger. I suppose 'certain' individuals don't know everything even if they do act like it."

She had been really surprised when Draco had said his father respected her. She supposed not many Pure-blood wizards would admit to owning Muggle items; much less the Malfoy patriarch to a Muggle-born witch who had always done better than his son in school.

She hoped sharing the information didn't put him in danger of anything, even though her explanation had been vague. He wasn't there when his father had showed her the car, but he had asked her what she thought of it later, so he had to have been told about the incident. She needed to speak with Healer Alden soon. They were to meet on Tuesday for a lunch and to compare what they found that would possibly help Draco. She needed a professional opinion on the matter, both for her condition and his.

She sighed wearily as she stepped out and in front of the window of the dilapidated department store of Purge and Dowse, Ltd that was the entrance to St. Mungo's. The time ahead dealing with the Malfoys was not going to be very pleasant, she knew.

* * *

Draco walked into Alden's office, crossing his arms with Hermione's file still in hand.

"Alden," Draco said, looking at the middle aged, salt and pepper haired Healer who was currently mixing a potion on a lengthy desk. "Something has to be done in order for me to know what's been going on for the past year. I can't just keep walking around completely ignorant of important matters that happened around me." He unconsciously held the file in his hand tighter.

"Draco, we've been over this before," Alden responded, not looking up from the cauldron he was currently adding salamander blood to, making the green substance turn turquoise. "We can't risk you falling into a coma or forgetting what you already know. Surely the risks outweigh the benefits of knowing what you've missed, however unpleasant that makes life currently."

"I was thinking of perhaps a way around this," Draco pressed. "Small inconsequential details and maybe big picture occurrences wouldn't harm me in any way. We don't know exactly what we're dealing with, with my situation. I don't see how it could hurt to know a few things that may well impact me in the future when there's a big chance I will end up knowing about them in time."

Alden furrowed his brow in concentration, seemingly, on the potion which he had added more salamander blood to, turning the now indigo potion pink, but Draco knew he was considering his proposal instead. Several Flobberworms Mucoses, Lionfish spines and stirs later, Alden finally looked up from the cauldron, piercing Draco with his hazel stare.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt," Alden began, "but you'll have wait until Wednesday before asking anything. I want you to make a list of whom and what you will ask so there won't be a possibility of things going wrong. You can see the practicality in this, I know." The Healer gave his patient and colleague a stern look when Draco looked to be about to protest.

Draco could feel his jaw clench in consternation. Of course he saw the practicality in his Healer's orders. It just felt like an invasion of privacy on his part. "You understand a lot of my questions aren't going to be specific? I can't ask about something I don't already know about."

"Indeed," Alden replied. "But we have to tread carefully, nonetheless. What did Thisbe leave you?" Alden eyed the file in Draco's hand as if he knew for sure it was Thisbe's case.

"Twins," Draco answered, a little annoyed that the Healer knew where the file came from. "I suppose I'm lucky I got this patient as soon as I did. Thisbe would've needed my help with her and the sooner details are known, the better."

"Might I ask who it is? Thisbe always had complicated cases and she like to get second opinions on potions, even though she was brilliant and knew the best one to pick in the end. Can't say she wasn't thorough. Knowing what a patient is like always helps, of course," Alden said as he cleaned up the ingredients for the Wiggenweld Potion he had finished.

"She's a friend from school," Draco said, not feeling the need to let the Healer know they weren't anywhere near being friends while at Hogwarts. He opened up her file again, rereading the complications. "Quite brilliant but headstrong, not that that's a bad thing. She just tried to suggest getting a different Healer but it's not going to happen. She'll see reason first, if I know Hermione Grang—

CRASH

Draco's head whipped up to find that Alden had accidentally knocked over a jar of Flobberworm Mucos.

"How silly of me," the Healer said, quickly cleaning up the sticky green substance and broken glass with the wave of his wand.

"A friend from school, you say," Alden asked as he started ladling the potion into phials. "I suppose she would feel a bit awkward for you to handle her case. Understandable, I imagine."

Draco felt his face contort into a half sneer, wondering when people were going to accept his credentials in being a Healer. Sure, Hermione would feel it awkward to have someone who taunted her in school and who she associated with in work be in charge her pregnancy, but that didn't matter as far as Draco was concerned. Not when it affected the lives of her unborn children and he was the only one who could handle the situation.

"I'm the only wizard in this building who has the necessary qualifications to deal with this case, you know I am," Draco said in an austere tone of voice that held no room for anyone to try to challenge his statement.

Alden looked over with eyebrows raised at the uncompromising look in Draco's eyes and stature. It seemed his Tuesday meeting with Hermione needed to include other matters besides Draco's memory loss.

"Of course, Draco," Alden said with confidence, "I'm sure no one would question your capabilities in this matter." Alden knew Draco was a fine Healer, one of the brightest in a long while to work in St. Mungo's. He could understand the young wizard's annoyance at fellow Healers that frequently tried to doubt his abilities out of jealousy and spite. His family's history didn't help either. "You seem impassioned about this. I take it Ms. Granger is a close friend?"

Draco furrowed his eyebrows when Alden had no hesitation in using Hermione's maiden name and not asking about the possible married one. "How do you know she isn't married?"

"I just assumed by your use of her last name," Alden readily answered. "Do you have information about the father? I know all cases need as much information as possible for any type of complications."

"Some bloody Muggle that didn't have the decency to come with her," Draco practically spat with near vehemence.

"Come now, I'm sure there's a good reason for his absence," Alden offered in the wake of Draco's obvious disapproval of the man.

"He'd better be in a coma then," Draco said with no belief that that was the case. "Otherwise he's just a bloody git."

Alden looked like he was about to say something but thought better of it. After filling a few more phials, he said, "Then I suppose it's a good thing we Healers don't vocalize our personal opinions to our patients when it concerns their personal lives."

Draco felt himself flush when he realized he had voiced aloud what he thought about Hermione's beau. He couldn't bring himself to regret his judgment on the mystery man, even though he didn't know the circumstances of their relationship.

"It is," was the only thing Draco said before walking out of the older Healer's office to do his rounds on his patients.

Alden looked after Draco with concern etched on his face. He felt things were going to get a whole lot more complicated in the months to come.

* * *

Draco looked into the fire of the grate in the sitting room he and his mother occupied while drinking tea. His father had gone to wax his car, one of the only things he did by hand or didn't leave to the house elves.

They never sat in the drawing room anymore. The area was all but abandoned since the end of the war. He didn't think Hermione knew about that.

"Mother," Draco said, looking across the wooden table that sat between them, "Hermione said she'd be happy to accept your invite for tea on Sunday."

"My invitation for tea," Narcissa asked, turning her blue eyes on her son in confusion.

"Yes," Draco said, looking at his mother with a bemused expression. It wasn't like his mother to forget inviting someone over. "Did you know that she's expecting twins," Draco went on, turning back to the fire. "We'll have to be sure to offer more than crumpets when she comes."

When his mother was silent for more than a few minutes, Draco looked over again to find that she was deep in contemplation. As if feeling his eyes on her, Narcissa looked over and gave him a small smile.

"I suppose she finally married that Weasley, then," she asked, raising her cup to drink.

"No, actually," Draco said, missing the slight "phft" noise that his mother made into her tea. "She's not married at all."

"Why ever not," his mother asked almost angrily. "It doesn't seem getting pregnant without getting married first as a thing Ms. Granger would do."

Draco looked over at his mother again with a look of near astonishment at her reaction to Hermione's marital status.

"I don't know," Draco replied, still perplexed by her response to his rely of information. "I didn't want to pry into her personal life."

"Well, who is the father," his mother asked, leaning forward in her seat.

"Some Muggle prat we know nothing about," Draco said with a grimace. "I didn't know you would be this affected by the news," Draco went on, still baffled at his mother's opinions. It seemed his views on Muggles and Muggle-borns weren't the only ones to change drastically.

"Is there something I'm missing," he asked. "How often does Hermione come over for tea for you to be this interested in her personal life?"

"Not too often as of late," Narcissa answered, making a point to relax her posture in her seat.

"'As of late,'" Draco repeated. He certainly had missed much. He cursed his uncle again under his breathe.

"How did you end up with her in your charge to begin with," his mother asked, taking another sip of tea while looking into the fire.

"Healer Thisbe retired. She would have needed my help on this case anyway," Draco replied.

"There isn't anything wrong with the babies, is there," his mother asked with genuine concern and worry in her eyes.

"Nothing that can't be handled," Draco said, happy that he could answer in a positive way when it came to Hermione's twins. "The birth may have some complications mainly due to the umbilical cord. It's wrapped around one of the babies in a dangerous way and it doesn't seem as if it'll correct itself. Nothing can be done by Muggles which is why she came to St. Mungo's. I've only used the technique for this problem once before when helping Thisbe, and I'm sure I can do it again when the time comes. It'll be easier this time since we know early and can give her potions that'll help."

"That's good," Narcissa said, happy that her son could help correct a complicated birth.

Just then his father walked in and sat in the open seat next to his wife.

"Lucius," Narcissa said as she made his tea, "your car will be needed to transport Ms. Granger here on Sunday."

"What," Lucius asked, confusion clear on his face, "why?"

Draco looked at his father, wondering what he would do. He'd already shown Hermione his car willingly, but to let her ride in it was a different matter. It would be good to see how much both his parents had accepted her and this was a perfect way to tell.

"She's pregnant and I invited her over for tea," she said calmly.

Lucius' eyes traveled over to his son for a brief second before turning back to his wife. They had a silent conversation through the brief look between them.

"I suppose she married that dratted Weasley, no doubt," he said before continuing, "We'll have to get her address, first thing."

"She didn't marry the Weasley," Draco said irritably, "She got with some blasted Muggle from who knows where."

Lucius didn't miss his son's obvious vexation, especially when he uttered the last part of the sentence.

"I take it you have her as a patient," Lucius stated, taking a drink of his tea.

"There seems to be a big chance of there being a complication during the birth of her babies," his wife informed him.

"Do twins run in her side of the family," Lucius asked his son who looked surprised that his father had asked such a question.

"From what I read in her file, yes," Draco answered, not sure what to make of his parent's odd behavior. It seemed Hermione was a lot more welcome here than she had been almost a year ago. His respect for her as a person was sealed the day she had suffered at the hands of his demented aunt. Perhaps it wasn't so far-fetched that his parents had shared his veneration of her during that time as well. He had seen many a wizard give in when tortured under the Cruicio half as long as Hermione had been, especially with his aunt doing the deed.

"She hasn't been over for more than a good two months," Narcissa said. "How far is she along, Draco?"

"About three months," Draco said, a little shocked at the realization that it had been a while since he had woken up. He guessed getting his life back on track and getting himself acquainted with patients that already knew him had made time fly by.

He opened his mouth to ask a question but then stopped himself, remembering his conversation with Alden.

"Healer Alden said I can ask questions. I just need to write them down beforehand to show him," Draco said, looking over at his parents. "I don't like the writing down idea, but I can see why it needs to be done.

"Are you sure that's the best idea," his mother asked, concerned.

"Mum, I need to know at least a little bit of what's been going on in other people's lives," Draco explained with fervor. "Just look at Hermione. Going around with a bump when it seemed like only yesterday her stomach was as flat as a board. I just asked Alden for the big picture of things, really, and only things that would obviously become apparent later on."

Both his parents nodded in understanding.

"Well, it's a good thing you have a date on Sunday with Adelaide Murton," his father said. "You won't be tempted to ask Ms. Granger anything that doesn't regard her pregnancy."

Draco groaned. He had completely forgotten the date his mother had set up for him. He didn't know who this Murton lady was and didn't even remember her from when they had been in school together. To say that he didn't want to be bothered by such a dastardly occurrence was a huge understatement.

"You'll pick up Hermione first," his mother said. "I'll send her an owl later informing her of the transportation."

Draco nodded before getting up to leave. He had a lot to think about considering all that transpired in this single day.

When Draco left the room, Lucius waited a bit before turning to his wife and saying, "You didn't invite Ms. Granger to tea."

"I didn't," she conceded.

**A/N: I'd like to thank my friend Chanatell for giving an idea. Haven't used it (all) yet, but I will, and I said I'd thank her in this chapter. Hope you all like this story so far. I'm plotting as I go. School is coming up really soon, like next week soon, but I'll try my very best to keep writing. It's going to be a busy year. **


	3. The Rose Giver

**A/N: Hey, it's been a long, long two weeks. Drove for lots of hours on little sleep to get to campus for another school year. Yay! I made it and it seems like I haven't stopped moving since last Sunday morning to get things in order. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Also, I didn't intend to advertise for other author's but I like to share what I find if I think it's good. A recent one is called This Curse to Bear by frostykitten. Rated T and very entertaining, in my opinion. Oh yeah, love your avatar Chanatell! Misha Collins is amazing!**

**Disclaimer: Not Rowling. She actually knows her grammar.**

**Chapter 3: The Rose Giver**

Draco plopped down on his bed that was a good size fit for a Malfoy. He felt a little drained even though his day wasn't any busier than any other. It had to be the near shock of seeing Hermione pregnant when he felt like not too long ago she was too busy in her career for any type of romantic relationship with anyone.

He felt he had to get some answers. It would be prying, yes, but the war hero had become as close to his family and there weren't many that could consider themselves close to the Malfoy family. He and his parents held their personal friends very close and judging by his parent's reactions they certainly liked her despite her being Muggle-born. Besides that, he was sure any information regarding her condition wouldn't put him in any danger. There was no way the two of them had been so close as to warrant any serious risk to his possible relapse into a coma.

He wondered what kind of Muggle she had gone out with. Where did she even visit with Muggles besides her parents? All her friends were wizards and witches. Wasn't she all alone during that early time period during first year in Hogwarts and everyone considered her the annoying teacher's pet who no one wanted to hang out with? Until Potter and the ginger, of course. He wished he could say that he would have been friends with her if she hadn't been friends with them, but that would be a lie. She was a Gryffindor and a Muggle-born one at that. His eleven year old self wouldn't have even bothered to know who she was if not for her two best friends. In a grudging way, he had to thank them for their friendship to her. How else would he have noticed what a great witch she was? Classes they had together, most likely. The Yule Ball would have caught his attention to her, definitely, because his attention was on her for the majority of the dance, though he would never admit it to anyone.

Draco felt his eyes droop with drowsiness as he thought of his musings of the different ways of getting he could have noticed her and of the possible ways Hermione got together with the unknown man. He knew her relationships were her business and that he shouldn't be bothered with the thought of her with someone as much as he was but he couldn't help himself. Before he could continue that line of thought, his mind forced a scene that he couldn't tell was either a daydream or a memory.

* * *

He was at the ministry on _her _floor. He came under the guise of discussing business and was confident until he stepped onto the floor that was decorated a horrid pink and had annoying decorations all over the place. Weren't adults supposed to be over the whole child and teen practice of celebrating Valentine's Day? Judging by the red, pink, and white confetti falling from the ceiling, they weren't.

Draco was half contemplating turning around but then caught site of the person he wanted to see. She looked a little annoyed at the choice of décor if her irked glances at the desks and confetti were anything to go by. He watched in amusement as she brought her hand up to her hair every few seconds to paw at the paper that landed in it.

When she disappeared into the privacy of her office, one of the few on that floor, he quickly made his way over; ignoring the questioning looks he received from her coworkers. He was about to knock on the half open door when he heard a sound of delight behind the entryway. He poked his head in to find that she was reading a card that came, apparently, with the arrival of a vase filled with a dozen big, red roses. Jealousy and frustration flashed through his veins at whoever sent her the flowers. Just when he had found the perfect opportunity to convey how much he liked her, albeit on a cliché date and manner, someone had to get in his way. He accidentally leaned against the door, which gave way and creaked, making him step into the room and turned Hermione's attention from the card to him.

"Draco," she said, her eyebrows rising in surprise at his presence of being in her office. "What are you doing here? There's nothing wrong with that contract with the Gringotts goblins, is there?"

Draco smiled at the question. Of course there was nothing wrong with the contract. Hermione had those goblins gnashing their teeth at how meticulous it was; no loopholes of any kind throughout the four-foot document for them to find if it was in the short creature's favor. Even his father gave her praise when the goblins couldn't reject the contract, given that his family had always had to revise at least twice to get the approval of the Gringotts employees due to some wording that could be twisted in Malfoy's favor. The goblins prided themselves on lowering wizards and witches with the 'mistakes' they seemed 'certain' to make. It was a wonderful day for them all.

Draco shook his head in answer. "The contract was perfect. I just came by to give you something."

Draco revealed the journal he had been hiding in his right hand and handed it to her. Her eyes widened when she opened the pages and saw the name written there; the journal obviously the original, judging by the faded cover and pages darkened by age.

"Where did you get Bridget Wenlock's journal?" Hermione asked in awe as she flipped through the pages with handwriting in it by the famous Arithmancer who first established the magical properties of the number seven.

"My family likes to collect historical artifacts and I noticed this in our library some time ago" Draco said, pleased with her reaction to the book. It was way better than the reaction she had to the roses. He felt smug having one up the unknown person who dared crowd in on his opportunity.

"What's this?" Hermione looked down in her hand at the rectangular object that had fallen out of the book and into her hand. It looked to be a bookmark but it was made of different shades of color from miniature flowers she had never seen before. At least not out of a book.

"Are these flowers from a Flutterby Bush? The ones that only bloom every one-hundred years" She was in awe again and it showed.

"Yeah," Draco confirmed. "Mother has a few in her garden and these bloomed recently. I shrunk and put a few stasis spells on them along with dipping them in a potion. I think they'll last for quite a while."

He felt the air knocked out of him when she suddenly hugged him. He was surprised for a few seconds but soon felt his face getting warm at their closeness as he hugged her back.

"This is amazing, Draco. I love it." Hermione raved once she pulled away, looking at the book and bookmark with happiness.

Draco felt his face form a smirk as he shot a triumphant look over at the roses that lay forgotten as if the flowers could understand his victory over them. His success was short lived, however, when he wondered if she would have hugged the person who gave her those like she hugged him. He scowled a little at the thought but schooled his features quickly.

"Who are these from," He asked, walking over to her desk and glaring down at the vase of flowers as if they had personally insulted him. The first person that flashed across his mind was the red head, but then he remembered that Hermione had said something a few days ago that indicated that that relationship had ended a number of years ago. He had wanted to ask more, but his parents were in the room and it didn't seem like the kind of conversation to be having when business was about to be discussed. He made his face neutral again before turning around to face her for her answer.

By the look on her face, Draco could tell that she had completely forgotten about the roses. His attainment of her attention to such an extent to take away her attention to the gift made him very happy. It meant the possibility that the bloke that sent them didn't mean that much to her.

"Oh, umm," Hermione said, blushing a little; Draco didn't like that one bit. "They're from a guy I've been on a few dates with."

Draco turned away from her to hide his reaction. He was more jealous than he had been before and felt like hexing the man who had sent her the dratted flowers. If he weren't an adult and a Malfoy he would have 'accidentally' nudged the vase over and then proceeded to pretend stumble a bit in 'surprise' to squish the slightly open roses under his shining shoes so they would be beyond repair. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, and before the impulse to smash the glass and flowers was too much, he caught sight of the card that she had laid down when she had taken the book and bookmark.

It was open and a cursive script wrote:

"_I know how you don't particularly like the showy decorations of Valentine's Day and the fuss, but every beautiful girl deserves some roses from her admirer. –Yours Aric_"

Malfoy was about to turn again but noticed a little arrow at the bottom of the card indicating to turn it around. What he found there almost had him crumbling the card up in a small ball. As it was he left a big crease in it from where his thumb and forefinger held it in place.

"_P.S. – Be mine. I meant what I said last Friday. Be my girlfriend._"

"What's his name, if you don't mind my asking," Draco said as nonchalantly as he could while he set the card down and pressed it a little to even out his crease and the fact that it had been open. He made it look like he were looking over her files and continued to block her view of what he was doing with his broad back and maneuvering his robe to take up visual space.

"Aric. He's a family friend," Hermione answered, still looking through the book with eagerness. She looked up though, when she registered the question.

"Are you two going steady; dating," Draco asked, turning to face her with a blank expression, only his eyes showing how much he wanted to hear what her answer would be.

"No, not exactly," she answered, looking a little baffled as to why he was so curious. "Why?"

"So he won't mind me doing this," Draco said before walking over, placing both of his hands on her upper arms and kissing her gently on the cheek.

He was pleased to see that her eyes had gone really wide and her mouth was slightly open, but her cheeks were soon turning red when she realized he had, indeed, planted his lips on her cheek.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Hermione," he said into her ear, making her blush more. "Don't give him an answer just yet," he added, giving away that he had read her card but not feeling bad about it. "I'll see you later."

He left the office with her still standing where she had been and walked through the department keeping his face impassive but not able to help the faint pinkness that crept into his pale cheeks.

* * *

Malfoy's eyes shot open and his breathing was labored as he lay down where he had been when the scene came to him. He quickly sat up but immediately regretted it when his head swirled a bit from moving so quickly. Looking at the clock on his nightstand told him that only half an hour had passed.

He ran his hand through his blond hair when he it dawned on him that what he had seen was a flashback and not a dream. He sat there for a while, shifting through his raging emotions left by the flashback and tried to calm them.

He apparently fancied Hermione a great deal sometime after, and not that long after, the time period he had lost his memory. As he thought more on it, he supposed it made perfect sense. His January memory and self was attracted to her and he had long since had a crush on her from school.

He liked the attention on the day he went to give her the book and he still felt the smugness of grabbing her attention to him and away from this Aric person who had sent her the roses. The Muggle. She had said "family friend", hadn't she?

He felt his breathe hitch. Didn't she say the father of her babies was a Muggle? Didn't that mean the she had turned him down in favor of the rose giver?

He felt like his heart drop into his stomach when it seemed that that was the case. He wondered what had went wrong with their date, because he was sure he would have taken her out not long after he kissed her cheek in her office. And he would have persisted, too, if she had refused him the first time he asked her out.

He lied down on his bed again only to sit right back up when he remembered that she wasn't married. What did this mean? Did the relationship between her and the Muggle not work out? Did he still have a chance with her himself?

Draco paused and then felt himself blush and put his head in his hands when he realized he much he liked her. He had wanted to smash the vase of roses and hex a man for showing interest in her, for crying out loud. This was worse than his jealousy in fourth year when she had that thing with Krum.

He sighed and fell back on his bed yet again. He knew how he felt now but had no idea what transpired between the two of them between the day after Valentine's Day and the day he had woken up.

He knew he didn't have many options at finding out what with the blasted curse that hit him and the threat of falling into a coma or losing memories if he tried to remember. There was still the possibility of something going wrong now due to the flashback he just had. He would have to report it to Healer Alden soon.

More than that though, he didn't know what to do with his new-found (yet actually older) interest in Hermione. He was her Healer and it would be unprofessional to make a move on a patient; a pregnant patient at that.

He found himself thinking that being her Healer didn't matter and that she looked great while pregnant, but quickly squished the thoughts. If anything he was a cautious person and always considered the ramifications of his actions. He was even starting to sound a bit creepy, even to himself and Draco Malfoy was NOT a creep. Unless… He stomped down the thought again feeling uncomfortable with his strange thought process.

Draco got up from his bed entirely and went to take a shower to distract himself from anymore wayward thoughts and inclinations. The priority was Hermione's twins and getting them to term without anything going wrong. In the morning he would work on the potions she needed to take and fill the whole day with that task instead of dwelling on thoughts of the day after when he would have to pick her up for tea with his mother. He would take things one step at a time.

He would be able to get through this new development without too much trouble. Right?

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to upload. As I type I'm neglecting reading that has to be done by tomorrow for class. The chapter is a little shorter than the others, too, as a consequence to that. I've been deliberating two ways this story can go and haven't decided on which one. We'll see when I start to write and where the characters take me. Anyway, tell me what you think, what you liked and didn't like, but don't feel pressured to review. I don't like to be pressured when I read stories but I do review when I like one. It also helps for motivation. Enjoy the chapter! I'll edit more later so excuse any mistakes for now, if you will. Also, I don't really know how flashbacks work so let's just assume this is how it happens, ok?  
**


	4. Muggle Phrase

**A/N: I was thinking of writing another Dramione story after this one but don't know what kind to write. I also think this story is moving a bit slow so I'm gonna attempt to add some good scenes and happenings to get the feels going. **

**Chapter 4: Muggle Phrase**

Draco forced himself not to fidget as he drove Hermione to his home after picking her up about ten minutes ago. He was a Malfoy and Malfoys did NOT fidget…unless a certain Gryffindor was near him. 'Dammit', he berated himself.

Due to his effort to not worry about how he would react when he would drive her he had finished any and all types of potion she would ever need during her pregnancy the day before. Sure, he had a few patients in-between the time he spent brewing, but after that his mind wandered and wouldn't stop unless he kept himself busy.

Healer Alden was concerned about the flashback. Draco left the whole subject of the scene vague but did tell him that it was very clear. It wouldn't do to have his personal life scrutinized and he liked to keep personal happenings as private as possible; especially when it included his current patient who he was smitten with. Alden gave him a few potions to take as precaution but couldn't guarantee that anything bad wouldn't happen.

When the older Healer tried to say the reasoning for the flashback may have been due to his 'school friend' being his most recent patient, Draco made it perfectly clear he would not pass her on to another Healer. Alden looked displeased but knew Draco wouldn't budge.

"I was a bit surprised your father let you the car to get me," Hermione said, startling Draco out of his concentration of trying not to be bothered by the fact that it was just the two of them in the vehicle for the next twenty minutes. He was hyper aware of what she was doing, from the way she admired the interior of the Rolls Royce to how she enjoyed the scenery out of the window.

He was annoyed with himself for acting like some pathetic teenager who was in love for the first time. It was embarrassing even if she wasn't aware of what was happening to him internally.

"More surprised than how I know how to drive," Draco asked, glancing at her as he spoke. She had on a pretty Muggle outfit and her hair was done up in a pleasant bun. How she got it tame enough to stay was a mystery he would never figure out.

She smiled at the comment. "I must admit that I was surprised when I found out you knew how to drive," she said. "But I'm more pleased finding out that even the Malfoys enjoy doing something Muggle."

"You discovered I knew how to drive when I asked what you thought about Father's car," Draco stated in a matter of fact way.

"Yes," Hermione answered but then quickly gasped, whipping around to face him in the spacious car. "You have your memories back," she asked, eyes unbelievably wide.

He shook his head.

"No," he said with a sigh. "That was a guess."

He saw her deflate in her seat but couldn't see her face because she turned to look out the window again. He felt bad for tricking her into proving that he was correct.

The mere act of his father showing her the car in the first place proved his father's respect for her. And Draco knew himself. He would have asked her what she thought of the car if his father told him about showing it to her. The thing was his father would have only told him about it if he liked Hermione as a person and considered her an equal.

"Father approves of you, you know," he said after a minute, not looking towards her as he continued to drive. He saw her head turn towards him out of the corner of his eye. "Not that you need it or anything," he quickly added on. "Or even want it."

"What makes you say that," she asked, "about him approving of me, I mean."

"He told me about showing you the car. I know he did; you agreed that you knew about me knowing how to drive, which proves that I had asked you what you thought about it before telling you that I knew how to drive it." Draco looked over and smiled at her. "I don't need to remember that particular day to know that he sees you as an equal just by the act of him telling me that he showed it to you in the first place."

"You men and your toys," she huffed and crossed her arms in fake annoyance. "Muggle or Wizard, you're all the same."

Draco chuckled in agreement but it soon faltered as the 'M' word dwelled on his mind. He shook his head slightly, a little perturbed with himself. What was he, seven years old? 'The 'M' word', he sneered to himself. 'Muggle. Muggle', he repeated in his head.

"Have you gotten the medical files on that Mug—uh, person," Draco asked, biting the inside of his mouth for almost saying Muggle. There was nothing wrong with the word, certainly, but he had a feeling it would make him seem prejudice. He _did_ have an extreme dislike for this Aric person, but the man being a Muggle had little to do with it, if anything at all.

Although to be completely honest it did hurt his pride as a Pure-blood male. They didn't take rejection easily and they were used to getting what they wanted. It went down like a—what was that Muggle phrase—dry pill, and a big one at that.

He smiled when he realized he had remembered it correctly. He was about to turn and tell her so, but then quickly realized he was having an inner monologue and telling her about it would be strange and awkward. And she would then know that he had had some kind of flashback that involved her and that Aric guy. 'The idiot,' Draco named the man, ignoring the fact that he didn't know the person in question. Or remember him if they had ever happened to meet.

Hermione shook her head. "I—we haven't spoken to each other in quite a while."

Her right hand unconsciously went to her stomach and a deep frown fell upon her face. After a few seconds, she resolutely moved her hand and set in on her armrest.

Draco saw the movements and her expression. He reached over and took her right hand in his left and gave it a gentle squeeze of comfort. He would have held on longer, but they were nearing the mansion and the trip up the long road was incredibly short in his opinion.

* * *

"Ms. Granger, it's nice to finally see you after so long," Mrs. Malfoy said, welcoming Hermione into the sitting room and guiding her into a comfy chair after her and Draco had stepped into the house.

"It's nice to be back. I've been busy lately," Hermione replied, giving a nod of thanks when the older woman offered her some tea.

Draco stood a little ways past the threshold in the room watching the interaction between Hermione and his mother. They seemed like they got along well and that this meeting was just like one of the, presumably many, they had had in the past.

"Draco, dear, don't you have a date," his mother said, looking sternly at her son.

Draco inwardly cursed himself. His date would start in less than ten minutes. It was a good thing him and this Adelaide Murton person where flooing to the restaurant separately. His mother had taught him to be punctual and she wouldn't like him showing bad manners by him arriving late.

He gave a "tsk" noise of annoyance to show his mother just how little he thought of this 'date'. He would much rather be sitting next to Hermione, trying to get details on what he had missed of her life and if they had ever spent more time together.

He turned to get dressed, but not before giving a farewell to Hermione, saying he very much regretted having to miss out on their opportunity to catch up.

She gave a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, making Draco curious but the cough from his mother had him exiting the room before he could ponder Hermione's reaction and with him scowling at his mum's antics.

* * *

Draco didn't have to wait very long for his date after he stepped out of the fireplace and was shown his table. He had held out the chair for Adelaide and then sat down himself.

The woman was pretty, to be certain, and their conversation was smooth, if not interesting. His thoughts though, kept going back to Hermione and what her and his mother were talking about. He shook his head, trying to concentrate on the person in front of him so he wouldn't appear rude, but it didn't help much.

Plus, Draco just couldn't shake off the feeling that the place seemed familiar. He was sure he'd never been to this particular fancy restaurant, but his mother was adamant that the food was delicious and the atmosphere very welcoming.

When there was a halt in his talk with Adelaide for food to be placed in front of them, he chanced a more thorough look around and felt his vision become a bit fuzzy. Suddenly a more clear vision appeared before his eyes.

* * *

He was sitting in the exact same restaurant only at a different table. He was laughing at something he thought very funny and looked up to meet the brown eyes of the woman who elicited such an action from him.

Hermione was smiling back at him, her laugh subsiding quicker than his. She looked happy to be there with him on their date. Her hair was in a pretty chignon and the satin ivory shirt she had on was simple yet elegant.

It wasn't their first date; far from it. He could tell that they were more than just friends. That prick Aric was still in the way though.

At the thought of Hermione's beau, his vision swirled again and the setting was very different.

"Hermione, just forget about what they may think and do what you want. I don't care what they say or do, you're more important," Draco was saying with emotion as he looked at her from across the low table piled with books.

It was her bookshop in a small area of Muggle London that was open on certain days of the week. It was really a hobby for her, which made Draco smile because she had the skill of managing of her time to do both this job and the one at the Ministry without wearing herself out.

"Draco—" Hermione began but was cut off.

"Is this guy bothering you, Hermione," a voice from behind them asked, making Draco turn to sneer at whomever it was that dared get into their business and call her by her first name.

"Aric," Hermione said, surprised at his appearance in her bookshop. She had broken up with him months ago and didn't expect to see him, especially not with Draco there. He knew she had broken up with her 'family friend' and was very pleased when she had told him on their seventh date.

"So," Draco drawled with malice in his voice, "this is the rose giver."

Draco looked the man up and down, clearly thinking the man was nothing special. Aric was tall, only a few inches shorter than Draco, and had brown hair and light brown eyes. He wasn't anywhere near bad looking if anyone asked passerby to describe him, and his build was sturdy also.

Draco, however, ignored these attributes and thought Hermione could've done a lot better; like himself. He smirked in an arrogant way because she was dating him now instead of the man that stood before him; the man now clearly irked that someone was so close to his previous love interest.

"What's it to you if I am, Aric," he spit the name out as if its taste in his mouth was disgusting. "It's none of your business, as far as we're concerned." He said as he walked around the small table and grabbed Hermione's hand in his, showing the man that she was his.

"I'm sorry, Aric, I'm a little busy at the moment," Hermione said, extracting her hand from Draco's and giving him a pointed look that told how displeased she was at his childish behavior. "Let's talk outside."

Draco only sulked, as subtly as he could, and instead crossed his arms as he glared at the man. He watched them closely as they stood outside, not liking the man's proximity come closer and closer towards Hermione as the conversation went on. He had to grit his teeth and ground his feet to not walk out of the store to bring her in and shoo the annoying ex-interest away.

The few people that walked by the store were frightened away by his constant scowl and their hands never reached out to open the shop door.

Draco was feeling himself relax as Hermione turned away from Aric, but was quickly moving when the man grabbed her by her arm and turned her around to kiss her.

He was out of the shop in record time, pulling Hermione away from the man and then slugging him hard in the face.

"Get your filthy Muggle mouth off my girlfriend," he shouted with fury, going towards the man to do more damage, but stopped when Hermione stepped in front of him.

"Draco, let me handle this," she said frantically, pushing against his chest, which he hardly felt through his rage at the man kissing her.

"That bastard's going to pay for touching you," Draco swore, trying to get to the man that was dabbing at his bloody mouth without forcefully moving Hermione out of the way to get to him.

"Just because he's a Muggle," Hermione asked incredulously, making Draco stop trying to get to the man who was slowly lifting himself up from the ground.

"Of course not! Any man, be it Muggle, Half-blood, or Pure-blood who try to kiss you will have me to answer to," Draco said, looking into Hermione's eyes with sincerity. "It has nothing to do with blood status."

He really didn't mean to call the man a Muggle, but he was blinded by his extreme anger that someone other than him had kissed her and the label had slipped out. He didn't like the man because he had previously dated Hermione, not because he was a Muggle. Old habits, even if they weren't practiced anymore or believed in, died hard.

"You're dating this psycho," Aric asked having finally gotten up, holding a handkerchief up to his mouth to staunch to flow of blood.

"I guess he's as stupid as he looks," Draco said, firmly wrapping his right arm around Hermione's waist. "Way to state the obvious, idiot," he said to Aric.

"Now get lost before I really show you what pain feels like," Draco said with vehemence.

Aric looked like he was about to open his mouth to protest but Draco faked a lunge at him, which had the man jump back and quickly vacate the area.

Hermione huffed at his antics but he only held her close before looking down at her, the smirk on his face becoming earnest.

"What kind of way was that to handle the—"

"Marry me," he said looking into her eyes and feeling his face reflect the emotions he was feeling internally.

"What," she said softly, her eyebrows knitting together, perplexed.

"Marry me," he repeated with more ardor, his eyes showing the felicity at the idea of her being his bride.

"But what about—"

"It doesn't matter what they say or think, Hermione. I love you and want you by my side as my wife," he said ardently, bending down so he could kiss her with all the passion and sincerity he felt in his proposal.

He got down on one knee, a thing Hermione never would have thought he would do, and pulled out a small felt box. He opened it and held it out for her.

Inside was a very beautiful antique ring that held three large diamonds and was made out of a metal she had never seen before. The design twisted and turned intricately and there were jades placed on both sides of the three diamonds, showing it to be the Malfoy engagement ring.

Her hand was to her mouth, her feelings threatening to overflow. She blinked back fiercely at the tears forming in her eyes.

"Don't make a bloke nervous or anything," Draco said with a small smile that still showed his anxiety at the chance, no matter how small, at being rejected.

Hermione choked out a watery laugh. He took out the ring and put it on her left ring finger, her handing slightly shaking with emotion.

"Woohoo!" came shouts from a small group of young people from across the street, having witnessed the scene.

Hermione blushed but Draco, laughing, quickly picked her up, swinging her around as he kissed her, eliciting more shouts of excitement from the group.

"Let's keep this to ourselves for now," Hermione said after a time, the both of them still hugging each other closely. She was listening to his heartbeat as he laid his head on hers. "Until I'm ready for them to know."

"Ok, love," he agreed, liking the endearment and planning on using it a lot more in the future.

"Draco," someone said, but it sounded like a faraway echo. He looked around, wondering who was saying his name. "Draco. Draco, what's the matter?"

* * *

The voice suddenly became clear and he was hurled back to his time and sight of being in a restaurant and on a date with Adelaide Murton. She looked really concerned and he could tell that she had been trying to snap him out of whatever it was that was happening to him for a while now.

He snapped his head around, looking frantic, his heartbeat and breathing speeding up. Another flashback had happened.

He quickly got up, startling Adelaide and the people sitting nearby.

"Draco, what's the matter," she asked, panicked.

"I, uh," he looked around, trying to get his bearings while figuring out what his flashback meant, "I can't stay here."

He needed to get back home and speak to Hermione. To his fiancé. To the mother of his children? He could rightly assume so, couldn't he?

"What," Adelaide asked. "Is there something wrong, something I did or said?"

Draco shook his head, a vile headache starting to form. He was afraid it was from the flashback.

"No," he told her, glancing down at her after he spied the fireplace from across the room. "I'm sorry, Ms. Murton. I can't be on this date or with you. I'm in love with someone else."

With that he paid for the dinner by leaving a stack of galleons on the table and strode to the fireplace to floo home; to her.

**A\N: Sorry for any mistakes, I'm writing this really fast so I can do homework I've been neglecting. I'm a bad student, I know. Ask if anything is confusing. I think some of it may be, at least with my wording, when Draco is explaining himself to Hermione in the car. Anyway, I wanted to make this chapter longer but I simply do not have the time to do so. I know what I want to write for the next chapter though, so that's good; it's just a matter of finding the time to do it. Hope everyone enjoys this one!**


	5. Upside Down

**A/N: Thanks so much for those that reviewed! I'm really happy people like my story; it's a great feeling. **** I really didn't mean to make this story that long, but I'm sure it won't go on for too much longer.**

**Disclaimer: I forgot to put one last time. This one's gonna stand for the rest of the story. Characters aren't mine.**

**Chapter 5: Upside Down**

Hermione sat in her seat, her stomach clenching in nervousness as she glanced at Narcissa sitting opposite her.

She was greeted warmly enough even though there was no invitation on the Malfoy's part for her being there for tea in the first place. It was true that she lied to Draco about the meeting, but his mother had accepted it and even granted her the use of Mr. Malfoy's car. The woman knew it was with good reason that Hermione would devise something like she did and the way in which she did it. She knew having Draco tell his mother about the tea invitation would get him to reveal other details about her that his parents knew nothing about. She hadn't, however, considered the possibility that Draco would have a date.

It had felt like all the air had left the room as she was momentarily shocked at Mrs. Malfoy's words. It was a good think Draco didn't notice anything since she was faced away from him, but she was sure his mother had. Hermione was much appreciative that Narcissa hurried her son away when the smile she had painfully given him was about to falter. It was bittersweet, though, since, on the one hand, she would have the privacy she needed to talk to Narcissa, but on the other Draco would be on his way to meet the mystery woman. He didn't seem to like the idea, which cheered her up some. She thought about how he had grabbed her hand and squeezed it in reassurance in the car and she felt tiny butterflies in her stomach for a brief moment. But now she was left alone with Mrs. Malfoy who no doubt was waiting for Hermione to start the conversation. She had no idea where to begin.

"I understand you are a patient of Draco's," Narcissa said after placing her tea cup down. "You're three months along now, yes? I offer my congratulations."

Hermione felt herself flush at her pregnancy being the beginning of the conversation and that it was Mrs. Malfoy who had started it. She supposed it would be a topic to come up first with an acquaintance you hadn't seen in a while.

"Thank you," Hermione said before pushing herself onwards. "I would not have had him as my Healer if I knew he would have been the person who was going to be taking my case. It was not my intention to see him again until he fully recovered his memories. Healer Alden and I are doing our best to figure out what spell Rodolphus hit him with. I would like your opinion on the matter."

She paused to take in Narcissa's reaction. Mrs. Malfoy was listening attentively, nodding in understanding and raising an eyebrow at Hermione's want of her opinion; but an opinion on what, exactly?

"Should I get a different Healer," Hermione asked. "I don't want my presence to trigger any flashbacks Draco may have. It was why we decided to not have me come around since I was there when he fought with his uncle, as you well know. He was adamant on staying as my Healer, if we go on what he told Healer Alden and me when we suggested it. Can you do anything to change his mind?"

Narcissa was still when she heard what Hermione had to say. She was expecting a different conversation to take place. It seemed Ms. Granger was not going to be forthcoming at the moment.

"Draco can be very stubborn, as I'm sure you know," Narcissa said. "I doubt I can do much to change his mind when it is set."

Hermione sighed. She was afraid of an answer like that.

"From my understanding," Narcissa went on, "Draco seems to be the only one who can do the procedure with the highest chance of success. He said he had only used it once before and that the previous Healer would have asked for his help in your case. I appreciate the concern you have for my son, Hermione, but surely you would want and need the best treatment for your babies."

Hermione squirmed a bit under Narcissa's gaze. The older woman was not one to be trifled with —not that Hermione would dare to do so.

"Of course," Hermione replied, "But Draco—

"Will be able to take care of himself, I am sure," Narcissa cut in.

"He's already had a flashback," Hermione said in a rush.

Narcissa's eyes widened a little in surprise. Draco had not told her about a flashback. He must have wanted to keep whatever it was he had remembered a secret. It had to be something close to his heart.

"Did you know, Ms. Granger, that Draco hates roses," Narcissa went on, ignoring Hermione's previous comment.

Hermione felt her face heat up and suddenly found the fire in the grate very interesting.

"He hadn't previously, which is rather odd," Mrs. Malfoy said. "He had me get rid of all the rose bushes in the garden. He doesn't remember, of course."

"Please Narcissa," Hermione pleaded, leaning forward in her seat, her face revealing everything the woman had suspected and now knew for sure, "Draco cannot stay as my Healer."

Narcissa sighed but after a while gave a nod. "I will do what I can to persuade Draco to relinquish his position as your Healer. He will, however, if he agrees with me in the end, want to monitor you progress even if he doesn't see you. I believe files are enough for him to see to be able to know how to deal with a case."

Hermione let out a breath of relief and gave a small smile.

"You will need Draco's medical file, I presume," Narcissa said, successfully freezing Hermione's smile on her face for a second before the young woman looked away before nodding. "My son is strange. He knows everyone else's file but his own. There will not be an issue of him recognizing it, I assure you."

"Thank you," Hermione said, not knowing what else to talk about. She trembled at what would next come out of Mrs. Malfoy's mouth.

"I'm curious, Ms. Granger," Narcissa began, unaware Hermione bracing herself for the worst, "as to why you felt it necessary to keep your engagement to Draco a secret."

Hermione's mouth fell open, caught off guard by Narcissa's inquiry. She had half expected condescension for daring to have a romantic relationship with the Pure-blood son of the aristocratic Malfoy family. To say the least, she was absolutely flabbergasted.

"He told you," Hermione asked in a whisper.

Mrs. Malfoy shook her head.

"No. But I know my son. Draco would not have put you in this condition if he did not intend to take you as his wife," Narcissa answered.

Hermione felt tears well up in her eyes at the statement.

"I wonder why you find his parents so disagreeable," Narcissa said, her eyes betraying the sadness she felt under her calm exterior.

Hermione's tears fell over now as she began to silently cry. She blamed her hyper emotional state on her pregnancy. She wouldn't have been openly crying otherwise.

She was sad that she had thought that Draco's parents did have a low opinion of her, but she had always assumed that their upbringing would always have them regard her as inferior. She didn't want to put a strain between them and their son because of her even if she and Draco were going to get married.

"I—I d-didn't mean to make you u-upset by not t-telling you," Hermione choked out through tears. "I j-just assumed…"

"It's okay, dear," Narcissa said, reaching over and patting Hermione's hand, "I understand."

The gesture made Hermione cry harder but before she could say anything the door to the sitting room burst open, making her and Narcissa jump. Draco rushed over to Hermione, looking like he was going to say something but stopped when he saw Hermione's crying face.

"Mother, what have you said to her," Draco asked angrily while he bent down, putting his hands on Hermione's arms and rubbing them up and down to comfort her.

"N-no, Draco, she h-hasn't done anything," Hermione said, trying to reign in her tears so she could try to come up with an excuse for her state. "It's j-just hormones."

Draco frowned, knowing she was lying about the hormones being the only reason for her tears. He turned to his mother and gave her a hurried apology before turning back to Hermione.

"What is it, love," Draco asked, effectively stopping Hermione's waterworks with his use of the endearment.

"You didn't have another flashback, did you," Hermione asked, fear of what could happen if he did.

"Another," Draco asked. He unconsciously started rubbing his right temple, his eyes squinting with suppressed pain.

Hermione silently cursed her stupidity for mentioning something she wasn't supposed to let know that she knew before she turned a concerned eye to Draco. He had a headache, that was clear, and it looked to be getting worse. Her heartbeat thudded against her chest in fear.

"Draco!" Hermione cried as he slumped to the floor unconscious, his face pale and his breathing shallow.

* * *

Draco heard someone frantically calling out his name in the dark. He grimaced at the killer headache he had but was glad it was receding. It was probably the person who was being so loud and panicked that had caused it in the first place.

His felt his face twist in confusion as to who could be calling him. He thought it was his mother at first, since she was the only woman who had cared for him to call out to him in such a manner, especially when he was a child and was in danger of getting hurt. The voice was different, though; higher and very familiar but also not.

He cracked his eyes open and blinked a little to clear his blurred vision. There was someone leaning over him, their warm tears falling on his face. He felt a shock go through his body and then his heart sped up when his vision cleared to show Hermione looking down at him, a few of her curls falling forward that had escaped her bun and tears streaming down her face.

He scrambled away and sat up, feeling his face warm up. He looked around and realized he was in the sitting room, his mother staring at him with concern standing behind Hermione.

"What are you doing here," he asked, quickly getting to his feet.

He saw Hermione's eyebrows knit together in confusion before it took on a look she often got in class when she was trying to figure out a particularly hard problem.

"What's the last thing you remember," she asked, still on the ground.

He felt his face form a familiar sneer, "What kind of stupid question is that?"

Hermione's face fell before she looked down, making Draco feel bad and confused as to why she reacted in such a way.

"Mother, what is she doing here," Draco asked, his eyes looking to his mother as he tried to not look at Hermione as she took her time getting up. Was she injured or something? What was taking her so long to stand up?

The answer became apparent when she finally stood up, her swollen belly obvious to every eye in the room.

"Quick work, Granger," Draco said, not believing his eyes and doing the only thing he knew how. "Whose is it? I refuse to believe Weasel has it in him. Did that Krum fellow really get to your goods that fast? Or," he paused, his eyes narrowing, "perhaps Potter had the honor. Lord knows you're playing every one of them."

SMACK

Draco held his stinging cheek, more astonished at the hurt face Hermione made than the fact that she had slapped him _again_ in less than a year.

"What are you playing at," he growled at her, both confused and angry.

She looked surprised at herself, the hurt fading from her face to be replaced with panic. Before she could respond, Lucius' voice came from down the hall.

"Narcissa, what's this racket I hear," he called, his faint footsteps echoing on the ground.

Draco's eyes went wide before he grabbed Hermione by the arm and rushed over to his mother.

"He can't find out she's here, mother, you have to help me hide her," he whispered frantically to her, his eyes darting from the door to her face. "I don't know what he'll do, you know how he, I mean we, feel about Mudbloods."

"Draco, I don't think that's necessary," Narcissa said, not quite sure what to tell her son who clearly thought he was in the past.

"Are you out of your mind," he asked as his face lost more color and his grip on Hermione tightening. "You know what he and the others did at the world cup, who's to say he won't do worse now that she's in the house and _pregnant_."

Before anymore could be said, the door creaked open and Draco turned around making sure to shield Hermione from view.

"What's going on here," Lucius asked, looking at his son and wife in confusion. "Draco, what are you doing back so soon? Did your date slap you?" He pointed to his own face to indicate which side the pink hand print was on Draco's face.

"Uh," Draco hesitated, "yeah. I was very rude to her."

"I see," Mr. Malfoy said, frowning slightly. "Where's Ms. Granger? Did she not come today?"

Draco's mind was spinning. His father knew Granger was going to be here. Did that mean she was kidnapped? His heart pounded painfully against his chest.

"Why would she be here," he asked as calmly as possible, shifting a little to make sure Hermione was still hidden behind him.

Lucius only made a confused face.

"Dear, we have a problem," Narcissa said, stepping forward a little and giving her husband a pointed look.

"Be quiet, mother," Draco hissed, glaring at her.

"Good evening, Mr. Malfoy," Hermione said, stepping from behind Draco's tall figure.

Draco looked at her as if she had gone completely insane and had a death wish.

"Ms. Granger," Mr. Malfoy addressed, "It's a pleasure to see you again."

Draco felt like the world was turned upside down and that he was having a very bad dream. What in the blazes was going on?

"Are we living in another dimension," Draco asked loudly. "What is going on? Since when have you two been all chummy with Granger? And you," Draco whipped around to face Hermione, his eyes accusing "when did you get bloody pregnant? We're not even fully finished with fourth year! I didn't peg you as a stupid girl who would give it up when she first got a boyfriend."

Hermione's mind was working quick, trying to stay calm at Draco's condition. They needed to get Healer Alden here and fast. For now, though, she needed Draco to see reason. He didn't fall into a coma, but she wasn't sure his present condition was anything to be thrilled about.

"Dra-Malfoy," Hermione switched names to make him more comfortable with how she would have addressed him in fourth year. "Despite being a Slytherin," her mouth twitched in an attempt not to smile at how they used to talk to one another but soon faltered into a serious line when her panic started bubbling up again, "I know you're very smart. Look at me closely. Is there anything different besides the obvious?"

Draco's eyes narrowed in suspicion. There was no way she was about to call him by his first name, right? And what the hell did she mean, "despite being a Slytherin?" His house was the best, obviously.

"Of course I'm smart, Granger," Draco said haughtily, "And I don't know how you expect me to not notice anything but that Quaffle protruding from you shirt."

Hermione's face burned with embarrassment at his reference to her stomach. She refused to feel bad, though; she was ecstatic to be having twins and knew she would get fairly big. Still, though, it was mortifying to have pointed out in so ruthless a manner and by the person who was the one who made her like that to begin with.

"Draco, hold your tongue," his mother chastised in a stern voice. "I will not have you be rude to our guest under this roof. Do as Ms. Granger said."

Draco gave his mother a glare but did as she said. He looked down at Granger, noticing she was much shorter than he remembered. But that couldn't be right, unless she was took some kind of shrink potion which didn't make sense. Ok, so that meant he got taller. She was pregnant, obviously, and some months along if he had to guess. He felt a pang of irritation and something else he didn't recognize when he thought about who the father was. He wrenched his eyes away quickly and instead looked at her face.

She was really pretty, he noticed. Like when he saw her at the Yule Ball, only different. Her face was more mature, the slight roundness of childhood having gone. Her hair was definitely tamer than he had ever seen it. And her eyes— she didn't look at him with annoyance or disregard. She was actually _looking_ at him as a person, like she knew him and didn't mind what she saw. But his ideas about Muggle-borns shouldn't be agreeable to her at all. And what about Potter and Weasel? More than that, how the hell did she end up in the Manor?

He looked to his mother and then his father. They were calm and didn't seem to mind one bit that a Muggle-born was standing in their sitting room. But he did see a change in them. They looked older. Both his parents had grey hairs that definitely were not there the last time he saw them, which wasn't a long time ago at all. He looked back at Hermione. Yes, she was definitely older, too. He didn't know how he had missed it when he first looked at her. He blamed it on his being shocked seeing her pregnant and her crying face. If any guy can go against tears, he'd have to get tips.

"What year is this", Draco asked, feeling cold dread creep up from the pit of his stomach.

"I'm in my mid-twenties, Draco," Hermione said, looking at his face to see how he would react.

Draco took a step back. What?!


	6. Confliction

**A/N: I think I'm depriving you all of some romance. I tried writing some in. In other news, I have a book to finish by tomorrow for a paper that's due the next day on said book and I don't know if I'll finish it. Not writing at least a little something by Sunday didn't sit well with me so this short chapter will have to do for now. Sorry! Please enjoy.**

**Chapter 6: Confliction **

Draco paced around the garden as he wondered, for the hundredth time, what Healer Alden, an apparent good friend and coworker of his (how the hell did that happen), had talked about with Granger and his parents. Before the man had arrived, Draco had sat heavily on a chair trying not to lose composure in front of one of the people at school who he didn't like. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, the man had come through the floo network before he could ask why in the world Granger was at the Manor in the first place. That all happened a good month ago now.

Alden had since given Draco specialized potions that sped up memory restoration now that the Healer was certain Draco wouldn't collapse into a coma. Draco supposed that was good news. Unfortunately, the man didn't know if Draco would ever recover all of his memories without the knowledge of the combined spells Draco's uncle had hit him with. Draco was still pondering that information as well. But where did that Mudblood fit into all this?

In truth, with the past weeks having memories come gradually of the rest of his fourth year and most of his fifth, he had more on his plate to think about than her. Or he would if could stop having dreams with her in them. He refused to believe those were memories because of the impossibility of what he saw in them. Him and Granger a couple? The ideal was laughable, to say the least. But still, he wasn't entirely opposed to the ideal even though he knew he should be. He blamed it on his future self. "Future", because he was still, as opposed to two weeks ago when he was 14, a 15, and now almost 16, year old teenager even though his body was the build of a young man. He was greeted with mixed feelings when memories came up. Some were annoyance and disgust at himself. He felt like two different people when he remembered his past, especially concerning Granger.

His dreams first started out with them being civil, and then it progressed to them enjoying one another's company, then to open camaraderie and affection. But that wasn't the worst, or perhaps best, part of it. He had dreamed of them being _together_ as a _couple_ and _snogging_. Snogging! Who in their right mind would ever consider Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger as a couple and _snogging_ one another? It was preposterous.

He turned sharply to pace in the other direction refusing to acknowledge the heat rising in his cheeks. As much as he would like to deny it, the feelings he had when he had dreams of her weren't of disgust or abhorrence. He was always positively giddy, much to his embarrassment. It wasn't very Malfoy to have "giddy" reactions, much less towards a Muggle-born. It was not to be borne.

He turned yet again as his mind assaulted him with recollections of his dream-self being affectionate towards Granger. The pleasure he felt when reaching out and taking her hand and entwining her fingers with his when they walked or sat by one another. Feeling his face break into a smile when her face would light up when they met, his delight that he had such an effect on her one he had never before known. His anxiety and racing heart when he had kneeled in front of her and presented her with the Malfoy engagement ring; impossible!

He knew his face was burning red even as he tried to calm his speeding heartbeat. He told himself there was no way on that green earth that he would ever even _consider _being bound to Granger in such a way. Perhaps his future-self had developed some sort of masochistic ideal of being affiliated with a Muggle-born he could never be with and Granger just happened to be in his presence. His parents had told him as much that she had helped his family rise in esteem since the war had ended. He still couldn't wrap his head around that piece of information, much less that You-Know-Who had actually come and gone. Sure, his memories told him that there was a strong possibility that he _had_ come back, but some part of him was in denial.

He let out a frustrated sigh before going inside to badger his parents on more information that they were reluctant to give. Keeping information from him for the past few months that he couldn't remember had them more tight lipped than he had ever known. They told him they had to do it for his own good and now that they could tell him information, they seemed to not be able to do so with ease. He wondered if they were trying to keep themselves from reliving what had happened during the second war he could not remember. He slowly found himself not wanting to remember either. What he had done during the war would most likely give him mixed feelings again with his future-self and he wasn't so sure they would be as mixed as before. He had a feeling they would be in sync and the thought troubled him about what he could have done if even his parents seemed somewhat ashamed of mentioning the past.

He felt queasy as the twilight sky turned darker, signaling another night where either dreams or memories would pervade his mind. He quietly wished for the former to happen than the latter.

* * *

That damned Potter always sticking his nose where it doesn't belong. Served him right to have that prying nose broken.

Draco shivered as he remembered the face that gave him the mark on his arm. The fear was a cold shiver that traveled down his spine and into his appendages. That creature wasn't human. He had no choice in doing what he had to in order to save himself and his parents. Why couldn't he just do what he had to?

The dream of Hermione and him discussing business because his father was reluctant to talk to her still. He moved closer to her, noticing, not for the first time, how wonderful her perfume was on her. He wanted to stay in this dream but he couldn't. Not with his parent's lives in danger.

Yes, the cabinet. No one else had to be hurt if he could just fix it. He pushed the thought of the repercussions of what would happen should he fix it to the back of his mind. He couldn't afford to think about that.

Hermione holding on tightly to his hand as they sat together, speaking of things they needed to share with one another about what had happened during the war. What was that shiny scar on her arm? He felt such guilt and shame. But she didn't blame him. He didn't know it was possible to love someone even more than he already did in that moment. And he needed to tell her so. He needed to stay in this dream but he was pulled back by intense panic.

Everything was going wrong. Why couldn't anything just go the way they were supposed to? He had to finish his mission or else those he loved would be killed. It was too much. It was too much!

The old man. He didn't want to kill him. He didn't want to kill anybody. He was so defenseless, especially now without a wand. But he had the opportunity to save himself and his parents! But… but he offered protection. Surely if anyone could provide it, it would be Dumbledore. No, they're here! The Headmaster fell from the tower after being hit by the killing curse.

Back to that inhuman creature. Back to fear and cowardice.

* * *

Draco woke with a start, his clothes sticking to him in cold sweat. His mind was whirring and his heart felt as fast as a rabbit's. What had he done? What did he help do? Was it all a dream?

Even as he questioned, he knew everything he saw were memories. He put his head in his hands wishing a hopeless wish that he could forget his sixth year. There were gaps, yes; his fifth year had gaps as well. And what of Granger? How could there be something there with what he had done? He dreaded the night when seventh year would be remembered. With that monster in their lives, how could anything good happen? He had a feeling it wasn't one he ever wanted to know about. He knew, without doubt, that it involved Hermione. No. He wasn't ready to see it.

He didn't want to see it.

**A/N: Hope you liked it. I wrote it in a very short period of time and it's really late night/early morning so please excuse mistakes. I knew I could have expanded the information on the scenes in here but I like how it turned out, personally. I have written a little bit of the next chapter about a week ago in a certain scene I think you all know of. It's not done yet, of course, but I think it's going to be good. Also, I've just been reading a lot of stories by the Author I mentioned a few chapters ago because she has a lot and I like them. Till next time!**


	7. Hermione Granger

**A/N: Hey, hope everyone likes this chapter. I stole time to write it and I hope it's as good as I want it to be. I don't think it will be too long now before it's done. Let's keep our fingers crossed!**

**Chapter 7: Hermione Granger**

"Hermione. Hermione."

Hermione startled out of her contemplative state as Ron called her name, trying to get her attention. They had just got through having dinner with the Weasley family and her, Ron, Ginny and Harry were now seated in the living room chatting. Or she _had_ been chatting, albeit with little enthusiasm as her mind kept dwelling on the letter she had received earlier that morning.

Narcissa had sent her a letter, one of many over the past two months since she had last been in the Manor when Draco had lost most of his memory, and the content of that particular one had her very worried.

Narcissa had informed her that Draco had been refusing his potions for the better part of the month. He kept asking for details about what happened when You-Know-Who had been in the Manor and all that he had his parents do. Hermione could tell that Narcissa was stressed, but her previous letters had all been asking how Hermione was coming along in her pregnancy and how joyed she was at the prospect of being a grandmother. She had hidden her trouble with her son well and Hermione admired her will of keeping her distress hidden until only when she was at her wits end. She had wished, though, that Narcissa would have informed her of Draco's refusal of taking his draughts sooner.

Alden hadn't told her anything about that, most likely because he was concerned and didn't want to put extra stress on her. He knew, as well as Lucius, she was positive, that Draco was the father of her babies. She could see why Alden had omitted such information. It wouldn't help in their search to help Draco reclaim all of his memories. And while Hermione was now very knowledgeable about Memory Charms, she wasn't any closer to finding out what Rodolphus had mixed in with it when he cursed Draco.

"Sorry, Ron," Hermione said. "I just have a lot on my mind."

Ron looked at her in understanding. He was such a great friend. They had dated once the war was over and into the year that Hermione had gone back to Hogwarts. As time went on, though, their interests and needs were vastly different from what either of them had expected and they both knew they couldn't go on. There had been romance and love between them, certainly, and they would always remain close friends. In the end, however, a romantic relationship wasn't enough to make up for their individual differences.

It wasn't that she was too smart for him or that their feelings for each other weren't strong. They just wanted different things. Ron had wanted to get married and settle down right after she would graduate. She wanted to live her life a little more without children, children she would no doubt love with all her heart and give all of her time for, for a while. He wanted to be an Auror, and was still one to that day. But she was weary of battle and didn't want to have to worry about him, especially with the possibility of her children not having a father if something were to go wrong in one of their raids. There were other things, of course, and they all added together to make a rift between her and her best friend, at least in the romantic department. In the end, it was for the best.

When she had started dating Draco, however, he had a hard time accepting it. He refused to talk to her, almost up until the month Draco had been attacked. He had come around, though, about a month prior, and admitted he was being a git and didn't want to have a strain on their friendship. When he had found out she was pregnant, the obviousness of it would have given it away so she had told her close friends sooner than others, he stuck by her side in her distress and made sure that she remained positive of the prospect of Draco waking up from his coma. And when he did wake up, he had encouraged her with his certainty that he would regain his memories.

"No more near finding out what Rodolphus hit him with," Ron asked, seemingly reading half of what was bothering Hermione.

She shook her head, and drooped a bit.

"Hey," Ron said, making her lift her eyes up to him, "there's still a chance he could regain most of his memories from those potions you said he's been taking. He'll most likely fall in love with you all over again when enough of them return. I know he's most likely always had a thing for you, now that I think about it."

Hermione blushed, not able to hold back the memory of Draco confessing he probably liked her as far back, mostly subconsciously, as third year when she had slapped him. He told her it made him think about his cruelty towards Hagrid and others and that he had, in his half-realized embarrassment and shame of what she had him reveal of himself towards himself, tried to stay away from her in order to avoid it from happening again. He said it had made him confused and he didn't want to question what was taught to him at that point in time.

"He doesn't want to see me," Hermione admitted, being brought down from the cloud she was just on. "His mother's letters and Healer Alden told me as much."

It was true. Narcissa's letter, with some ire towards her son's decision, had relayed Draco's firm refusal to have Hermione at the Manor. Healer Alden also said Draco had uttered the same desire when she had come up in their conversation. It made Hermione's heart hurt even though she understood the reason behind it.

Draco Malfoy was not the Draco she knew: the Healer, friend, and lover. He was the teenage boy from Hogwarts dealing with memories that were most likely confusing and causing him a lot of distress. His current self didn't love her much less care more than two straws for her either. It hurt that he didn't want to see her, but she tried to content herself with the knowledge that he was a different Draco than the one she grew to love. She would make that knowledge be enough because it _had_ to be enough as things were now.

"Don't worry, Hermione," Ron said, "everything will work itself out in the end. He'll get his memories back."

She smiled at the conviction behind Ron's words. He was confident that everything would be okay and she couldn't help but feel like it would be when he spoke with such certainty.

* * *

Draco was getting tired of him mother's nagging. And worse, his father was behind his mother in wanting Draco to take the remainder of his potions. Didn't they understand that he didn't want to see anything concerning You-Know-Who, his family, or Granger where they all mixed. If he didn't know any better, he'd even say they _both _disapproved of his decision in keeping Granger away.

It wasn't that he didn't want to see her; it was his apprehension in what he would _feel_ if he saw her. It seemed that he dreamed about her the most of all his dreams. Well, perhaps they were memories he wanted most to know about. He didn't want to have any more nightmares concerning the snake-demon that plagued his vision every other day now that he refused to take his potions. He much preferred the ones that had _her _in them.

He sighed wistfully as he brought his hands up to cover his face. Had he really proposed to her? Were they really as happy as his dreams led him to believe they were? Did they really spend that one night of passion together when they both knew they should have waited but their yearning for one another led to an event without a hint of regret in the morning?

Draco felt like his face was on fire when the scene replayed itself inside his head. He also felt a little bit intrusive since he couldn't remember the precise moment he fell so much in love with Granger to want to tie her to him in such way even though he felt the exact same feelings his future-self felt when he had looked into her eyes.

And she was pregnant right now. Draco felt his stomach drop and got dizzy. Could he possibly be a father? The father of Hermione Granger's babies? He took a shaky breath as several different emotions hit him at once. Excitement, fear, apprehension, joy, pride, disbelief, and many others he didn't know the names of. But how to know for sure? It wouldn't be enough to just ask her and that prospect was simply embarrassing since he had little recollection of the events that led them to be together. To him she was the bossy, know-it-all girl that was annoyingly smarter than he was; the best friend to the two people in school that he hated the most. The headstrong girl he had a secret crush on since third year but wouldn't allow himself to acknowledge the fact.

"Blasted all" Draco shouted into his empty room, furiously rubbing his hands through his hair, messing it up.

He glared at the potions that sat innocently on his desk. He knew that if he wanted to find out anything more, he would have to take the potions. And he knew that when he did he would not want to see what memories would pop up while he slept. There was no good that could come out of You-Know-Who, his family, and Hermione. He felt a jolt of self-disgust at his cowardice. Steeling himself, he determinedly walked over to where the potions were and picked one up. Ignoring the slight shake in his hand, he uncorked the top and gulped it down as swiftly as he could.

'There,' he said to himself. 'No going back now.'

* * *

Draco sat in the dust drawing room with his head in his hands. He avoided looking at the faded Dark mark that was on his arm. He had been deliberately ignoring it but he couldn't now. Not anymore. It seemed like just yesterday that it had happened.

He had remembered the moment Hermione, Harry, and Ron were brought to the Manor. He knew he was terrified that they had been caught, especially Hermione. He had wanted to help them, but was too afraid to do anything but pretend he didn't recognize Harry when he was asked to identify him.

But then his mother had recognized Hermione. He had been trying to ignore and not look at her in hopes that nobody would realize that he recognized her. He couldn't stand to face the three as he turned his back and gave a less than half committed answer to his parent's inquiry.

He didn't blame his mother. All she wanted to do throughout the entire time that monster was in their house was protect her husband and son; even if that meant the possible death of others. He just wished it hadn't been Hermione that was the person who had to suffer because of his mother's devotion.

And not only that; it seemed everyone in the bloody house had recognized her; his father, mother, aunt, the snatchers, and that horrible werewolf that wanted nothing more than to sink his teeth into her. His aunt was going to give her to him, too. It was a good thing Weasley had busted in then otherwise he would have done something that would have put his family in absolute danger.

He squeezed his eyes shut as he remembered the scene of when his aunt kept her back in order to torture her for information. She knew. His aunt knew that he had a thing for her. The brief hesitation she had when she ordered Greyback to keep her there was proof enough that she knew. He had mentioned her more than once when his aunt had asked about school. But no matter how much affection she had for Draco it didn't stop her from torturing Hermione.

He had wished he had the courage Weasley did to shout out to take him instead. He felt like he had hit rock bottom at that point when he did nothing.

And then he had to stand there and watch her be tortured. The sounds of her screams were forever to be branded in his memory. He wanted nothing more than to make it end, but knew that there was nothing he could do to make his aunt stop. And when she had used crucio, he was beyond shocked and horrified. He couldn't even bring himself to cry with how horrible it was that the girl who he had previously convinced himself that she meant little to him, was crying out in pain due to the very ideals he had learned growing up. It made him sick to his stomach and ashamed of himself and his family. His mother's hand must have hurt with how hard he was squeezing it.

When his aunt had told him to get the goblin, he had hurried to fetch the creature as fast as he could in order to stop his aunt from hurting Hermione again. If his aunt had the goblin to question, she wouldn't have to cut or crucio her anymore.

Then her friends had busted into the room. He didn't want to fight them but He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was on his way and the only way to even have a chance at saving Hermione was to be seen fighting against the very person who that evil bastard wanted. But then his aunt held her at knife point. She wasn't even conscious, for crying out loud. Though, now that he thought about it, it was probably better than she wasn't so she didn't have to feel the terror of being threatened with death by having her throat slit.

The whole situation just got worse when his aunt had offered Hermione to the werewolf. He was frozen with dread as cold alarm shot down his spine. He didn't have time to do anything when the chandelier fell due to his dismay at the near future that Greyback would get his hand and fangs on Hermione and that You-Know-Who would give his okay. His opportunity to save Hermione was nonexistent if it was the dark wizard who was the one who would give her to the werewolf. The shards that marred his face moments later were painful. He had been too absorbed in thinking of the horror that would befall Hermione and he was lost in thought as he stared at her unconscious form, not knowing what he could do to prevent it.

His mother had taken charge after that. She had distracted her sister from Potter by pointing out their previous house elf. Perhaps her surprise was genuine that their old servant had raised his hand against them, but he didn't think that that was the reason at all. She could have easily fought against Potter and helped her sister bring him down, but she chose not to. After they both stood frozen watching the small group Disapparate away, Draco hoping beyond hope that the knife his aunt threw at them didn't pierce Hermione, his mother whispered that she was pleased that the werewolf had been knocked unconscious. It was a curious thing to say after everything that had just happened.

He also had flashes of memory when he was doing his intern as St. Mungo's and late night researching along with glimpses of himself with Hermione when they had met for business dealings within the Ministry. The feelings he had for her seemed gradual, but he knew they had always been there.

And now…now there was no question. His slightly teen and future self were in complete agreement. He was in love with her; the insufferable, too smart, courageous, and loyal for her own good Hermione Granger. The girl who wouldn't allow herself to be bullied by him in school. The girl who had pride in herself and wouldn't be brought down because someone like him thought she was inferior because of her blood. The girl who didn't look his way twice when every other female longed to be with him.

But what happened since that led them to be together? He had been a coward and had allowed her to be tortured while he stood by and did nothing. The grief, guilt, and shame he felt was agonizing. The Dark Mark that was forever branded on his skin was going to be a constant reminder of all that he did wrong in his life. How he wished he could scratch it off bit by bit if only if it could take his sins with it.

He suddenly stood up. This would not do. He was sick of being a coward. And he felt that his future self was not one at all. It was time for something, _anything_, to be done; especially now that the war was over.

He was a Healer, yes? He would just have to reeducate himself on all that he once knew. It wouldn't take long. His intellect could be compared to Hermione's if he put his mind to it. And his occupation was one he had wanted to do as a boy. Apparently he had grown a backbone to stand up to his father in order to do what he wanted and go after it. And Hermione.

Well, he would just have to make her fall in love with him all over again because he was already in love with her. His memories may be jumbled, past with future, but his feelings were in sync with his future ones and they weren't going to change. He knew he wasn't exactly the same person as he was before his dratted uncle had cursed him, but he was still Draco Malfoy. He wouldn't leave her even if she asked him to. He was nothing but persistent when he wanted something. He made up his mind.

He needed to go to Hermione and tell her his intentions. He was going to marry her, be it before she gave birth or after, he didn't care which. And he was going to be the father to her children. The possibility that they were his was too high and even though she didn't wear a ring declaring her as his, she would be one day.

He left the dusty drawing room determined to go find Hermione, quite forgetting he had more potions on his desk. Heading down the hall, he heard voices in the sitting room. He slowed down his pace as he reached it and stuck his head in the door that was slightly ajar. Perfect. Just who he wanted to see.

Hermione, now five months pregnant since she it had been two months since she last been there, was talking to both of his parents and, in his eyes, looked absolutely bewitching. He felt guilt at his selfishness keeping her away for so long. But there would be no more of that. If things went the way he intended, she would be coming here so often it would feel like a second home. He was intending it to be her only home, but that would have to be in the future. The hopefully near future.

They all looked up from where they were sitting when he closed the door behind his entrance in to the room.

"Draco," Hermione said, surprise written all over her face when her eyes found his.

Draco walked with purpose over to Hermione and kneeled down to her so that they were eye level. He didn't care that his parents were in the room and not six feet from them or that they could clearly see how close he was to the woman he loved.

"Where is it" he asked, looking into her expressive brown eyes. How had he missed how much they told? It seemed his future self was adamant that the present him knew how to read her expressions.

"What," Hermione asked, confused but feeling heat creep onto her face by how close his face was to hers.

"The ring. The Malfoy engagement ring I gave you when I asked for your hand," he stated simply. "You should be wearing it."

**A/N: I think it cut off kind of abruptly, but I need more time to know where this whole scene is going. I know I just kind of skipped months here, but time needs to move on for progress but not so short as to drag things out, know what I mean? I hope nothing in this chapter was confusing.**


	8. Indiscretion

**A/N: I'm not sure what kind of confrontation you are all hoping for but I did my best in trying to make this particular scene good. After days of thinking and going over scenarios, I still wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it. Hope you like it anyways. **

**Chapter 8: Indiscretion**

Hermione sat in the sitting room sitting opposite of Narcissa Malfoy and her husband, Lucius. Her stomach was in knots once more and this time she was tenser than when it was only her and Narcissa in the room two months ago.

It turned out that Lucius did not know Hermione was pregnant with Draco's babies. Narcissa had written that he probably suspected but she hadn't told him, feeling it would be better for Hermione to tell the Malfoy patriarch. Hermione knew Narcissa was eager for Lucius to know, enthusiastically telling Hermione, before Lucius had joined them that he would be ecstatic to know he would be having grandchildren even if he didn't express it outwardly when it would be revealed to him.

They had been making small inconsequential talk for a while before the conversation turned more serious.

"Lucius, dear, Hermione has some news for us," Narcissa said, looking expectantly at Hermione with a small smile of encouragement.

Hermione looked down nervously, not able to meet the eyes that looked so much like Draco's. He should be there with her, delivering the news to his parents together, especially to his father. 'Oh,' she thought, 'if only we had told them about our engagement sooner. He probably would have missed that incident with his uncle and not be in the situation he's in.'

"Well," Hermione started, wringing her hands nervously, "I'm sure you know that Draco and I spent a lot of time together before he lost his memory."

She paused, trying to figure out a good way to break the news to the man that used to stand against everything that she was. Tell him that she, a Muggle-born, was engaged to his son and pregnant, thereby linking him with the very things all three of them had been raised to hate. She knew that they had all changed drastically, but it was still hard, especially when Draco wasn't by her side.

She was about to continue when the door to the sitting room closed, making all three of them look towards the door to find Draco standing there, a determined look on his face.

"Draco," she said, sure that her face held all the surprise that she felt at seeing him there. What was he going to do? Tell her to leave because he didn't want to see her? He had told his parents and Healer that he didn't want her at the Manor. It still hurt to know that he didn't want her there, especially with him standing right before her eyes.

He strode over confidently and kneeled in front of her so that they were at eye level. She couldn't help the blush she felt creep up on her face at how close he was. The fact that his parents were right there, seeing them with front row seats, made her even more self-conscious.

"Where is it," he asked, looking into her eyes, his grey ones piercing her brown.

"What," she asked, not sure what he was talking about. Had she taken something from him in one of his memories?

"The ring. The Malfoy engagement ring I gave you when I asked for your hand," he said, making her breath hitch in her throat. "You should be wearing it."

Well, she had wanted Draco to be there to tell Lucius that it was his son that she was with. The way it was presented, though, was not exactly what she thought it would be. She shot a nervous look at his father who simply raised an eyebrow.

"Do you have your memories back, Draco," Lucius asked his face blank.

Draco turned to his father, a resolute look on his face.

"Not all of them," Draco said, "but Hermione and I are engaged."

"I cannot believe your indiscretion," Lucius said, his eyes hard. Hermione's heart sank.

"Excuse me," Draco said, standing up and looking at his father with hostility. His cold voice made Hermione anxious as to where the conversation was leading. So she had been right. Lucius would not accept her or her relationship with Draco. She looked towards Narcissa whose face was tight but for the pursed lips and narrowed eyes she focused on her husband.

"You heard me," Lucius said, also rising. "Of all the things I've taught you about propriety, I never thought this would happen. I thought I raised you better."

"Lucius!" burst Narcissa, leaning forward in her seat, shock clear on her face.

Draco whipped out his wand and pointed it at his father.

"Don't you dare stand there all self-righteous, going against the best decision I have made in my entire life," Draco spat, his wand steady and his face furious. "You may not approve of my choice of a wife, but I'll be damned if you think I'll just sit here while you mouth off about her."

Hermione looked tearfully up at Draco. It wasn't that she ever doubted his feelings for her, but for him to go against his father, the man he had always looked up to, for her was simply astounding.

To her surprise, Lucius looked confused.

"It's not Ms. Granger I have a problem with," Lucius said, exasperation in his voice and gesturing wildly. "It's my grandchildren that were conceived out of wedlock that bothers me. Now put your wand away, your fiancé is pregnant."

When Draco lowered his wand, Lucius went on talking.

"How could you have sacrificed her honor," Lucius asked, looking at Hermione. "She deserves better than that."

Hermione blushed and saw that Draco did as well. She was sure they both felt like lust filled teens who had been caught doing something naughty. And, needless to say, she was shocked. She had no idea Lucius had so much respect for her. She now felt foolish that she had kept her engagement to Draco a secret from them.

She could see Narcissa trying to suppress her laughter. Hermione was sure Mrs. Malfoy was laughing at her husband more than at them. Apparently she didn't have as strict a code as her husband did.

"Dear," she said, "they're adults. I'm sure they had intended to wait."

Lucius stole a quick glance to his wife before turning back to Draco.

"Did you at least ask to marry Ms. Granger before your passion got the better of you," he asked.

"Of course," Draco cried in indignation but then turned towards Hermione, uncertain, "Right?"

"Draco asked to marry me months before we…before we…," Hermione's face was red with embarrassment. There was no way she could possibly finish that sentence.

"You see, dear," Narcissa jumped in, "he had every intention to marry her."

"Has every intention, mother," Draco said, looking at Hermione, his expression soft and with a smile gracing his lips.

"You bloody well better," Lucius practically barked, "no grandchildren of mine will enter this world without Malfoy attached to their names. The very idea of it is not to be borne."

Hermione was surprised again by Mr. Malfoy. She had never heard so much as a slight swear cross his lips in the two years she had known him.

"For all our sakes, Ms. Granger, I pray my grandchildren are born with your brains and not those of my child's," Lucius said to Hermione.

Hermione burst out laughing, both at Mr. Malfoy's statement and at the slightly petulant look that was on Draco's face. Then, to her surprise, tears of relief fell down her face. It was good to know Draco wouldn't be at odds with his parents because of her. They were even, dare she say it, proud that she would be a part of their family.

Quickly wiping away her stray tears, Draco wrapping his arm around her in an attempt to comfort her, she looked at the older Malfoys.

"I'm just as guilty as Draco, if not more," she said. "I, uh, didn't want to let you know about our engagement. I—I didn't think you would…well, I thought that…"

"I understand, Ms. Granger," Lucius said solemnly. "I hope you know now, though, how much pleasure Narcissa and I have in calling you our soon to be daughter-in-law. Have no doubt of our sincerity."

Hermione nodded, blinking fiercely to keep her tears at bay. She cursed her hormones once more.

The older Malfoys left the young couple to themselves, sensing they wanted to be alone to discuss things between the two of them.

"Hi," Draco said, pulling up a chair to sit closer to Hermione.

"Hi," she smiled back. "How much do you remember?"

"Fragments of here and there," he informed her. "I don't know specific details, but I know the big picture of events. It's the most anyone could hope for, from what I understand."

"Do you still want me away?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Of course not. And I'm sorry for keeping you away. I actually wanted to see you but my memories were still of me at Hogwarts. The thought of us together made me…unsettled."

"Unsettled," Hermione asked, unease rising in her stomach.

"Well," Draco said, looking embarrassed, "I always liked you and then here comes scenes of the two of us being together and doing…things."

"Is that why you refused taking your potions," Hermione asked, trying to keep her blush at bay.

"No," Draco said in a stern voice, "Never. It was You-Know-Who being in this house. The things I saw. I didn't want to take them because I knew you would come up and I couldn't face it."

They were silent for a long while before Draco burst out, "How can you ever agree to be with me? After what I did? After what I didn't do to help?"

"Draco," Hermione said, cradling his face in her hands, "there was nothing you could have done without endangering your family. I know how much this torments you. Besides, you didn't identify us; not really."

There was another long pause in which Draco had knelt down to place his head against Hermione's stomach. To both of their delight, they felt kicking.

"Did you ever tell me you were pregnant before I lost my memory," he asked while Hermione ran her fingers through his hair.

"I was going to," she answered, "the day when you uncle attacked us. You had come to get me at the Ministry because we were going to get lunch together. I was going to tell you then."

"We'll make this work," Draco said with resolution. Draco waited for her response and looked up when a gasp came from her.

Hermione's face was cringed in pain and her hand was on her stomach.

"Something's wrong," she breathed, fear in her eyes.

Draco felt cold alarm shoot through him as he looked into Hermione's frightened eyes.


	9. Solutions and Weasley

**A/N: Sorry to leave everyone on such a cliffhanger. Thanks to everyone that reviewed! I really appreciate it. I want to make it clear that Hermione is pregnant with twins just in case that information didn't get through. I would answer another specific review, but it would give away the story. I plan to have this story finished by the next two or three chapters (most likely just two, I think) and maybe an epilogue. **

**Chapter 9: Solutions and Weasley**

Draco's body jumped into action subconsciously. He raised his wand and let it hover in the air to do a diagnostic scan before running to the door and calling for both of his parents. He then ran back to Hermione to see what was wrong. He leaned down and held her hand in his to reassure her.

"Hermione, love, I need to go to St. Mungo's to get the potions that you need," Draco said quickly, hating that he had to leave her in pain until he got what she needed.

He rushed to the fireplace just as his mother walked in the door looking anxious. "Take care of Hermione," Draco said before disappearing in the green flames.

He emerged from the fireplace in Healer Alden's office because he didn't remember how to get to his own.

"I need you to get a Healer for Hermione at Malfoy Manor as soon as possible," Draco demanded as he made his way pass the healer that was writing something at his desk and heading, he assumed, to his own office to get potions. His body seemed to remember the way just as his mind knew what Hermione needed even when chunks of his knowledge was missing in being a Healer.

Draco burst into the room that read Malfoy on the door and searched for the potions he knew were there. He paused, asking himself where he would put something important to him in his office. He walked to his desk and waved his wand to unlock a compartment. In it were a few phials filled with different colored potions. He grabbed all of them and went to the fireplace in his office securing the potions before going back to the Manor.

When he arrived he saw both his parents looking in distress as an older Healer looked over Hermione while Healer Alden was taking out items from a black bag.

"I have these," Draco said, taking out the phials from his pocket as he rushed to Hermione's side and pressed the potions in the older Healer's hands. He grabbed Hermione's hand again and she squeezed it as she closed her eyes, trying to regulate her breathing.

"Ah," the healer said, eying the potions before she chose the dark purple one and uncorked it to smell its contents. Draco was annoyed that the woman didn't give the potion to Hermione immediately if it was the right one. "This is exactly what we need. It seems you are well prepared, Draco, even with your memory loss. This potion takes hours to brew," the woman said as she handed the phial over to Hermione to drink.

Once Hermione had downed the potion, her breathing slowed down gradually and the pain was erased from her face.

Draco let out the breath he was holding, relieved that he had thought to make that particular potion beforehand. He slumped to the floor still holding Hermione's hand. He was more distraught than he had realized in his hurried state to get her better.

"What was wrong with her," Lucius asked in a tight voice that would seem cold to others that didn't know him. Draco, less surprised of his father's actions since he had revealed that he was perfectly fine with his engagement to Hermione, knew his father had been worried.

"Placental abruption," the older healer said. "It's very good fortune that Draco had this potion brewed already. I'd hate to think what could have gone if the abruption was more severe. Ms. Granger should be fine now, though she will need to rest and drink plenty of fluids."

"Are the babies okay," Narcissa asked, going over to stand by Hermione's chair, putting her hand on her shoulder in a soothing manner.

"Perfectly fine, I assure you," Healer Thisbe said with confidence.

"Thank you, Healer Thisbe," Hermione said, once she got her breath back and looked up at the Healer that came back out of retirement to handle the cases that had been left with Draco. "Draco made me potions a while ago to help along with my pregnancy, as you know. I suppose he kept the more serious potions close by in case an incident like this happened," Hermione said, looking lovingly at Draco as she felt her eyes get droopy.

"You'll fall sleep soon," Draco said, gently helping Hermione out of her seat and leading her towards the door. "The potion's side effect causes no less than ten hours of sleep."

His knowledge surprised him as much as it had everyone else in the room. It seemed he retained some of his knowledge as a healer even if he wasn't aware of what that knowledge pertained to after a certain point.

By the time Draco and Hermione made it to Draco's room (he wouldn't have her in any other) she had fallen asleep as soon as her head hit his pillow. He stayed there with her for ten minutes to assure himself that she was really going to be all right before forcing himself to go back to the sitting room. He found his parents in deep conversation with Healer Thisbe while Healer Alden sat close by listening intently.

"This can't go on," he said when he got the attention of those in the room when he closed the door. "I'm Hermione's healer, aren't I? I'm going to need my memories to keep her and our children safe until they are born."

He looked at his healer. "Is there nothing that can be done," he asked beseechingly.

"Not until we know what your uncle hit you with," Healer Alden said solemnly.

"I see," Draco said as his eyes took on a distant look. As quickly as it had come it vanished as he made his way to the fireplace in quick strides.

"Where are you going, Draco," his mother asked. "Come here with us and discuss what Healer Thisbe says about Hermione's pregnancy. Perhaps some of your memories will return if you hear her talk about your work."

"I can't, Mother," Draco responded, turning to look at the group. "I need to find Potter or Weasley."

"What for," his father asked, clearly not liking the idea of either Potter or Weasley even after so many years had passed. Draco briefly wondered how he was going to take them being a part of their life a bit since Hermione was going to be his wife.

"To see if I can visit my dear uncle. Look after Hermione," Draco said before stepping into the grate to floo to the Ministry.

* * *

"Potter," Draco called after stepping onto the Auror floor and spotting the messy black hair of his previous rival in school.

Harry looked up from a few documents he had been reading, displeasure over what he had been reviewing replaced by confusion at hearing a voice he hadn't heard in quite a while.

"Malfoy," Harry asked, surprised that the blond would willingly come seek him. His surprise soon turned to worry as he figured the only way Draco Malfoy would seek him out would be because Hermione couldn't.

"What's happened to Hermione? Where is she," he asked as he very nearly ran towards Draco, grabbing his wand and ready to go to wherever it was Hermione needed him to be.

"Calm down, Potter, she's fine," Draco drawled, not able to contain his habit of showing his disdain to seeing Potter. Now, though, he needed the bespectacled man's help and being his old self wasn't going to help in his endeavor.

"I need to speak to my uncle," he said, cutting to why he was there.

Harry's face took on the look he had while he was looking at the documents now closed in his hand.

"He's here now," he muttered, half in thought. "Ron is…talking to him."

Malfoy's face must have shown his curiosity and slight confusion because Harry said, "About the curse that hit you."

"Well, then, what are you waiting for," Draco said haughtily, "take me to them."

Harry looked like he was about to say something but thought better of it. He simply turned and walked towards the back of the floor where he opened a door to a large corridor that held a number of rooms. They went to the third one where Harry opened it and walked in, followed by Draco.

The room was large and divided by a murky grey barrier clearly made by magic. It was like a thin veil but Draco felt the magic that it held, sure that anyone who tried to walk through it would severely regret doing so. Harry stood there for a few seconds, looking at the veil as if he could see through it.

"Don't try to walk or talk through it, because you can't and they won't be able to hear you," Harry said and tapped his wand to the veil before Draco could ask what he was talking about. The murky grey obstruction began to clear and the other half of the room was gradually becoming visible. Before long Draco saw two figures. His uncle locked by chains in a chair and the red headed Weasley sitting opposite him, only a small table in between them.

If the tea pot and refreshments didn't surprised Draco, then the fact that the two men talking lively together and _smiling_ certainly did. He was so shocked that he couldn't form a coherent thought for a good fifteen seconds.

"What the bloody hell is going on," Draco hissed, his eyes narrowing in anger and his hand gripping his wand so tight it Harry thought it would snap.

"Ron's been working on him for some time now," Harry said, stealing a quick glance at Draco. "You may not think it, Malfoy, but we are good at our job."

Without further explanation Harry tapped the now invisible barrier again and Ron's and Roldolphus' voices could be heard loud and clear.

"—really, they didn't stand a chance," Ron was saying, "they have nothing on the Cork team. Lancanshire barely have a handful of winning matches against them since 1385 and you know it."

"I concede the point," Rodolphus said, seeming to forget about his cuffed hands when he took a sip of his tea, "but you cannot say that the Wigtown Wanderers' Chasers Parkin's Pincer is inferior to the strategy of the Wronski Feint."

"What," Ron burst, his face going slightly red, "those two are completely different things. There's no way those two can be compared."

"This," Draco spat, gesturing wildly at the two wizards behind the veil, "is what your job entails? Speaking Quidditch with criminals? I'm sure a trained seal could do the same thing."

Harry only gave him a wry look and a smirk that annoyed Draco immensely. Draco only scoffed at the implication that Weasley could get anything out of his uncle. The ginger just didn't have it in him.

They watched the wizards for several more minutes before the conversation turned more serious.

"How do you like the additions of your privileges," Ron asked nonchalantly, "the chess set is to your liking, I hope."

Draco raised his eyebrow at Ron's speech pattern. He hadn't known the Weasley to be subtle, but Draco knew he was getting at something beneath the surface of his, seemingly, aloof question.

"Yes, it is," Rodolphus responded, helping himself to a crumpet on the tray sitting on the small table between them. "Having a challenging game with others beats the monotony that is Azkaban."

"I'm working on getting you some Chocolate Frogs along with some other sweets. I think you share that trait with you nephew," Ron said, shifting his body into a more dominant position.

Now Draco was impressed. It seemed the red head had learned some tact as he got older instead of blurting things out without discretion. The near sly way he adjusted his body language was proof enough.

Rodolphus' eyes narrowed slightly and his lips became a little thinner. "I suppose it is," he said. "Not that I want anything to do with that brat, the blood traitor."

Draco snorted at the stupidity of his uncle. He was talking all chummy to Ron Weasley, one of the three heroes of the war that defeated You-Know-Who, and part of a family Pure-Bloods had long considered Blood traitors. It seemed the red head had done some work on his uncle.

"I don't blame you, that's for sure," Ron said, making Draco sneer. "That ferret doesn't have much going for him even when he had his memories."

"I can agree on that," Rodolphus said, nodding his head in agreement.

"It was quite an ingenious spell you hit him with. I say with complete honesty nice work," Ron said with conviction. "It's what he gets for hanging out with Granger, am I right?"

"Yes, that damn Mudblood," Rodolphus exclaimed. "To shame himself by hanging out with that prideful woman who fancies herself a witch."

Draco was confused. Did his uncle not know he was talking to Ron Weasley, best friend of Hermione Granger and Harry Potter? What was going on?

"I'm glad I came to my senses when I did," Ron breathed in relief. "The superiority of Pure-Blood witches and wizards have become apparent with the death of the Dark Lord."

Draco felt his mouth fall open in shock. This wasn't the same Ron Weasley he had seen at Hogwarts.

"He thinks he's close to finding out what he used," Harry said, not taking his eyes off his friend on the other side of the veil, his expression unreadable. "But at what cost, I don't know."

Draco looked at Potter, trying to understand what he meant.

"It was quite by accident, I assure you," Rodolphus said. "If my nephew hadn't busted my mouth, it wouldn't have worked as well as it did."

"What did you use, then, if not just the Memory Charm," Ron asked, eagerness in his voice.

Rodolphus started laughing, at first softly then loudly. Ron kept his face impassive.

"You think I'm going to tell you, do you," Rodolphus asked through his laughs. "Not a chance in hell."

Ron, to everyone's amazement, started laughing as well. His laugh was filled with so much mirth that it even made Draco feel uncomfortable. His uncle certainly was if his fidgeting was anything to go by, the laughter having died when Ron had first started laughing.

Draco looked over to Potter whose eyes held a strange gloominess to them as he watched his friend.

Ron's laughter ended abruptly, making the air in the room tense by how unnatural it was to cut off such genuine laughter in so quick a manner. Despite himself, Draco felt the hairs on his arms raise in apprehension.

"Solitary confinement, no visitation, no variation in food, no seeing the light of day for the rest of your sentence," Ron said with casualness as if discussing the weather, a small smile on his face that contrasted creepily with the seriousness in his eyes. "I'm sure you'll love all the time to yourself to dream of all the sweets in the world you won't have. You'll also like the silence to dwell on all the good times you've had with fellow prisoners playing Wizard's Chess. I don't know if they'll miss your company, but I imagine you'll miss theirs. Enjoy your hell."

With that Ron got up from his seat, vanished the tea set, and strode confidently towards the veil seemingly for the purpose of quitting the room.

"Wait," cried Rodolphus, his face filled with panic. His eyes were fearful and his face was pale. "I—I'll tell you. Just don't put me in solitary confinement," his uncle begged.

Draco felt uncomfortable at the malicious smile Weasley gave before masking his face as one of indifference before turning back to Rodolphus.

"What the bloody hell," Draco said, blown away at Ron's disquieting way of handling his uncle. He had, Draco presumed, befriended him, made the man comfortable and at ease by bestowing favors, and then threatened to take them away. It was positively Slytherin; a word and house that were not supposed to be associated with a Weasley, ever. Draco was beyond shocked.

"Let's go," Harry said, tapping the barrier again making it a murky grey once more. "I don't think you need to see your uncle if I'm correct in assuming why you're here."

Draco dumbly followed Potter out and they sat in silence as they waited for Ron, each not bothered by the lack of noise between them since they were both contemplating what they had just witnessed.

"I thought you and ginger were supposed to be the good guys," Draco finally said after he pulled himself out of his thoughts.

"We certainly aren't evil," Harry said, still lost in thought.

"Could've fooled me," Draco continued. "The actions Weasley just demonstrated are not one that someone in Gryffindor would use. He seemed more Slytherin than anything and I would never have thought to describe a Weasley as one of my house."

Harry only sighed, which made Draco look at his fiancé's best friend in question.

"Ron's quitting after he gets the spell that hit you," Harry informed, rubbing a hand through his black hair in distress.

"Why would he do that," Draco asked in confusion. "With skills like he has he could achieve a lot in the business of finding out information from stubborn prisoners. Aren't you Aurors all for that?"

Potter shot him an annoyed look before explaining. "You saw Ron in there, Malfoy. Does he resemble anything like the guy you remember in Hogwarts? The job has changed him and we aren't sure if it's for the best."

Draco didn't like being talked to as if he didn't know about something, but he could see Potter's point. They were all too good to be comfortable changing in to anything resembling a manipulative person. Hadn't he himself change after the war? It didn't even cross his mind to think of the change that would happen to others that had always been on the opposite side of You-Know-Who. Turning dark definitely had not crossed his mind.

"I can see your point," Draco said after a pause making Harry raise his eyebrow in surprise.

"What," Draco asked, "surprised we can agree on something?"

"Yeah," Harry said, looking bemused, "I guess I am."

"Come on, Potter," Draco said, "I'm going to marry your best friend who is a Muggle-born and someone I was raised to hate. Certainly my agreeing with you is not the most shocking thing in the world."

Harry was about to respond until he saw Ron heading towards them. Draco turned as well, a little surprised that he actually wanted to speak to Weasley. Such a change had happened in the hot-headed wizard that Draco was curious as to what to make of the wizard now after so many years had passed. Begrudgingly, Draco found that he respected the red head.

Plus, he wanted to tell them what happened to Hermione and preferred the both of them be told at once so he wouldn't have to repeat it a second time. He wanted to get back to her side as soon as possible and relaying the information. Getting his uncle's spell that caused his condition as quickly as he would now achieved his purpose even faster. The fact that Weasley had been working on it for so long and finally achieving the goal that so many had tried and failed was not lost on him. It seemed he would have to relay his gratitude. The information Weasley got was vital for him getting his life back and, more importantly, helping get Hermione the best care she needed during her pregnancy.

"Weasley," Draco said in greeting, getting up and offering his hand to the man he had been at odds with in school.

"Malfoy," Ron said, taking his hand without hesitation and hiding any surprise he might have had to the offered hand.

Draco felt his eyebrows rise. Perhaps Potter was right about his speculation of his friend. The old Ron would have definitely sputtered and turned red with anger if he had so much as glimpse the blond anywhere near. Perhaps they could be civil, if not only because Hermione would be adamant on their getting along, which he was sure she would do if she hadn't already. The future was going to be interesting, whether they could use the information or not.

**A/N: Sorry for updating so late in the day. I hope you all like the bit about Ron. It was sort of last minute planning on my part. I don't like ooc characters but I like to think this change happened gradually and only makes potential trouble in work (for now, at least), which is why he's quitting. Anyway, I hope this chapter was enjoyable. **


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